BAGHDAD (Dispatches) -- Iraq’s Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi has rejected a proposal from Washington requesting that U.S. troops maintain a presence in the country after the September 30 deadline that has been linked to the resistance’s disarmament, an Iraqi government spokesman has revealed.
“The prime minister rejected a proposal for some international coalition forces to remain beyond September 30,” said spokesman Haider al-Aboudi during a Baghdad press conference, according to state media. 
“The government is proceeding with completing the procedures and commitments related to confining weapons, regulating their possession and use, and unifying decision-making. The state is exercising its legal authority to administer the affairs of society,” he added, according to the official Iraqi News Agency (INA). 
Iraq’s resistance factions continue to reject the presence of any foreign forces on Iraq’s soil, including U.S. troops and Turkish forces as well – which have also been present in the country for years.
According to a report by the New Arab, Iraqi resistance groups have proposed placing their weapons in storage facilities and freezing military activity for a period of two years.
Sources affiliated with the resistance-linked Coordination Framework (CF) were cited as saying that this was the factions’ offer, as opposed to handing arms over to the state. 
“Iraqi armed factions have proposed placing their weapons in their own storage facilities and suspending military activity for two years, rather than handing their arsenals to the state,” the source said.
Baghdad has “rejected” the proposal, the report added.
“The government received the proposal in recent days. Under the plan, unnamed factions would halt armed operations and place their weapons in designated warehouses for two years, but would retain control of them rather than transfer them to Iraqi security forces,” said three Iraqi political sources. 
Kataib Hezbollah was among the groups involved in the resistance’s proposal, an Iraqi MP told the New Arab.
The resistance faction “linked the proposal to the future of U.S. forces in Iraq and demanded assurances that its leaders would not be targeted.”
Recent U.S. and Saudi airstrikes on Iraq, targeting the Popular Mobilization Units (PMU), have resulted in scores of casualties. 
Iraq’s resistance factions are closely linked to the PMU, which has deeply integrated into the country’s military and security apparatus since its formation to fight Daesh in 2014. 
The government’s declared rejection of U.S. troops maintaining a presence in Iraq follows a recent Kataib Hezbollah warning that the resistance is “running out of patience” with Baghdad. 
One of the group’s officials said earlier this month Iraqi security forces were cracking down on the resistance and arresting senior figures.