Kurdish Peshmerga Enter Uncharted Territory as US-Led Coalition Exits Iraq

Iraq's Kurdish security forces are navigating a defining moment after the US-led international coalition formally concluded its twelve-year mission against ISIL (ISIS) and completed its military withdrawal from the country. The Pentagon announced the end of Operation Inherent Resolve on Wednesday, meeting a September 30 deadline that Washington and Baghdad had agreed upon two years earlier. Other coalition partners also pulled out their forces in line with the same timeline, leaving Iraq's own security apparatus to handle the fight against the armed group without the direct backing it has relied upon for more than a decade.

For the Peshmerga, the Kurdish region's fighting force, the departure of coalition troops carries particular weight. The force has long depended on close military support from the United States and its allies to protect the semi-autonomous Kurdistan region's autonomy and to defend against ISIL. The coalition's exit has therefore raised fresh political and security questions about the Peshmerga's future role and its capacity to operate independently.

Days before the coalition's formal departure, on September 21, the Erbil-based Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) announced that it had merged Kurdish armed factions into a single unified force. At a ceremony marking the occasion, KRG President Nechirvan Barzani described the move as a major national step toward consolidating the region's institutions. "Kurdistan needs one force, one ministry, and one command," he declared, adding that the Peshmerga must become a national force free from party interference and disputes. He also said the unification represented a significant step toward that goal.

The merger brought together militias affiliated with Barzani's Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and its long-standing rival, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), under one structure. Those two parties have dominated Kurdish politics in Iraq for decades, and their separate armed formations had long been a source of friction. Zeidon Alkinani, a Middle East political analyst and founding director of the Doha-based Arab Perspectives Institute, told Al Jazeera that the unification could help stabilize Iraq. He argued that Iraq's most damaging rivalries have been within communities—intra-Shia and intra-Kurdish—rather than between them. Reducing the influence of the KDP and PUK party structures inside the Peshmerga, he said, strengthens Iraq's stability and gives Erbil firmer legal footing with Baghdad.

Yet the process remains far from complete. Barzani himself cautioned in his speech that the unification marked the beginning of a phase that "may be even more difficult" than past Kurdish struggles, and he said the Peshmerga must rise above party loyalties. Alkinani echoed that concern, noting that the real test is whether the merger survives given the persistence of two geographically distinct commands. The KDP's power base lies in Erbil, while the PUK is rooted in Sulaymaniyah, a division that has historically shaped both politics and military organization in the region.

Retired Lieutenant General Jabbar al-Yawar, former secretary general of the Peshmerga Ministry in the KRG, told Al Jazeera that the two parties remain embroiled in a number of political disputes, including the governance of Kurdistan and relations with Baghdad. Those disputes, he warned, could spread to military institutions if the forces remain tied to political parties. In other words, without genuine separation of the Peshmerga from party agendas, the newly announced unity could prove fragile.

On the ground, the Peshmerga Ministry insists its forces are prepared for the post-coalition era. Spokesperson Major General Othman Mohammed told Al Jazeera that the Peshmerga "has always been on full alert," pointing to its role in repelling ISIL in 2014 despite having limited means at the time. He also highlighted the strong relationship between the Peshmerga and Iraq's other security forces, saying commanders from both sides enjoy very good cooperation and coordination. That coordination has become more critical now that the international coalition has ended its mission, with Iraqi forces relying solely on their own capabilities to detect and stop ISIL activity.

Despite the confident public posture, analysts see deep unease among Kurds about what the US withdrawal means for their long-term security. Mohammed Salih, a non-resident senior fellow at the US-based Foreign Policy Research Institute and an expert on Iraqi and regional affairs, told Al Jazeera there is "considerable uncertainty and concern among Kurds surrounding the US withdrawal." Many are asking whether the departure of American troops signals the end of Washington's commitment to Kurdish security, he said, given that the US has served as a key security guarantor for the Kurdistan region for the past three decades.

A further source of anxiety is the loss of critical air defense systems that the US took with it when it withdrew. That gap has created serious concern for Erbil, which has come under several drone and missile attacks since the start of the US war on Iran. Without the coalition's protective umbrella, the KRG may find itself more exposed to external threats at precisely the moment it is trying to integrate its own forces.

Politically, Erbil has signaled that it intends to continue cooperating with Baghdad as before, within Iraq's federalist framework. The day after coalition forces withdrew, KDP leader and former KRG President Masoud Barzani emphasized what he called "very strong coordination with the Iraqi federal government to confront any kind of threat or danger, whether it comes under the name of ISIS or any other name." In Baghdad, he threw his support behind the federal government's efforts to fight corruption, disarm Iran-aligned militias, and settle outstanding disputes with Erbil. Those positions suggest the Kurdish leadership is seeking to shore up its relationship with the central government as a substitute for the departing American security umbrella.

The coming months will test whether the Peshmerga's newly declared unity can hold under pressure. The force must simultaneously manage internal party rivalries, fill the intelligence and air-defense gaps left by the coalition, and maintain workable ties with Baghdad—all while ISIL remains a latent threat. The unification announcement has given Erbil a political talking point and a potential foundation for reform, but as both Kurdish leaders and outside analysts acknowledge, the harder phase has only just begun.