gitlab-create-merge-request

name	gitlab-create-merge-request
description	Create a GitLab merge request using glab CLI with the first commit message as the title. Use when the user asks to open an MR for the current branch targeting main, or after completing work that needs review.

Create Merge Request

Create a GitLab merge request for the current branch targeting main.

Steps

1. Get the first commit message of the current branch (compared to main):

   git log main..HEAD --reverse --format="%s" | head -n 1
   

2. Create the MR using glab, follow commit message conventions of the repo:

   glab mr create -t "<FIRST_COMMIT_MESSAGE>" -d "<SUMMARY_OF_WHAT_HAS_BEEN_DONE>" -b main --fill -y
   

Attaching a screenshot/image (optional)

A local image can't be embedded in an MR description directly — it must first be uploaded to the project, which returns ready-to-paste markdown.

1. Upload via the project uploads endpoint. Use raw curl --form, not glab api (glab api -F file=@path sends the file contents as a string field → HTTP 400, not a multipart upload):

   # URL-encode the project path: aircall/foo/bar -> aircall%2Ffoo%2Fbar
   curl -s --request POST \
     --header "PRIVATE-TOKEN: $GITLAB_TOKEN" \
     --form "file=@/path/to/image.png" \
     "https://gitlab.com/api/v4/projects/<URL-ENCODED-PROJECT-PATH>/uploads" \
     -o /tmp/upload.json
   python3 -c "import json; print(json.load(open('/tmp/upload.json'))['markdown'])"
   

   The response markdown field looks like ![name](/uploads/<hash>/name.png).

2. Put that markdown in the MR description. For a multi-line body, write it to a file and pass -d "$(cat /tmp/mr_body.md)" to glab mr create.

Notes

• Ensure the branch has been pushed before running this command
• The MR title will be the first commit message of the branch
• Reviewer/assignee: add --reviewer <username> and --assignee @me (e.g. --reviewer pierre.goutheraud). Requesting a review pings the reviewer.
• Token for the upload curl: glab authenticates via the $GITLAB_TOKEN env var — use it directly. Its config.yml token is often !!null, and glab auth status --show-token prints it on a Token found: line (not Token:), so don't try to scrape it.
• fish shell gotcha: if the shell is fish, VAR=$(...) command substitution fails to parse — write the commands to a .sh file and run bash script.sh. Also prefer curl -o file.json over piping curl into python json.load (piped reads can truncate).