Camp Ashraf

Camp Ashraf (or Ashraf City) is a camp in Iraq's Diyala Governorate. The camp has a character of a small city with all basic infrastructure, and was previously the headquarters of the People's Mujahedin of Iran (PMOI/MEK). Population in the camp used to be around 3,400 in 2012, but in 2013 almost all were relocated to Camp Liberty near Baghdad International Airport after pressure by then-prime minister Nouri al-Maliki's office. Camp Ashraf is situated 96 kilometers (59 mi) north of Baghdad near the town of Al Khalis. On January 1, 2009, United States formally transferred control over to the Iraqi government. From 2003 to 2013, Camp Ashraf was attacked several times, the worst being on April 8, 2011, when the Iraqi Army raided the camp and killed as many as 34 people and wounded 318 more. On September 1, 2013, an attack was directed by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and conducted by Iranian proxy militias Kata'ib Hezbollah and Asaib Ahl al-Haq, killing 52 civilians belonging to the MEK, with numerous prisoners being abducted to Tehran following the raid. The Camp was briefly occupied by ISIS in 2014 and remained under the control of ISIS until 2015, when it was recaptured by the Badr Organization, an Iran-backed militia (militia supported by Iran) affiliated with the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF). As of 2025, the Camp remains under the control of Iraqi Private Militias affiliated with the Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) and the Islamic Resistance in Iraq (IRI).