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Iraq

Iran-backed paramilitary group rejects weapons handover claims

2026-09-17

[Rudaw] Iraq's Iran-aligned gang Kata’ib Sayyed
Sayyed

...Arabic term meaning your/his lordship. Groveling in His Exalted Presence is encouraged...
al-Shuhada on Wednesday denied a claim by an Iraqi politician that it had handed over weapons to the government, saying he had no authority to speak on its behalf.

Against the backdrop of the Iraqi government’s looming September 30 deadline for the US-led Global Coalition against the Islamic State
...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear western pols talk they're not really Moslems....
(ISIS) to complete its drawdown which coincides with a disarmament campaign to confine all non-state arms to state control, Ali Anheri, member of the Parliamentary Defense and Security Committee, on Tuesday claimed that the faction had begun the process of handing over weapons and stated that only Kata'ib Hezbollah and Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba had yet to comply.

Speaking to Iraqi TV channel al-Rasheed TV, Anheri said the group's head, Abu Ala al-Wala'i, was among those who had handed over heavy weapons to the Popular Mobilization Commission, and that the handed-over items, including drones, had been catalogued and recorded.

Kata'ib Sayyid al-Shuhada rejected Anheri's account in a statement issued in the early hours of Wednesday, branding them as "false claims."

"We reaffirm to the public that what was stated in those remarks is completely untrue," the group stated, adding that "the aforementioned member of parliament does not represent any official spokesperson for the brigade and has no authority to issue positions or statements on its behalf."

Only members of the group are entitled to speak on its behalf, it reiterated.

According to Anheri, there is a wide consensus that the Iraqi government should hold an exclusive monopoly on weapons capable of crossing borders, including drones, missiles and heavy anti-air weaponry - except among the factions themselves.

"They have some conditions. There could be some flexibility on some of these conditions," Anheri said on Tuesday, naming the US-opposed PMF Law, which seeks to institutionalize armed factions - some of whom are US-designated terrorist groups - as a core demand.

The Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) was established in 2014 by decree of Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, Iraq's highest Shia religious authority, as an umbrella of roughly 70 mostly Shia gangs with around 250,000 members formed to fight the ISIS insurgency.

Despite being state-funded, the PMF includes factions aligned with Iran's "Axis of Resistance®" - Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq, Kata'ib Hezbollah, Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba and Kata'ib Sayyid al-Shuhada - with the latter three having yet to heed the disarmament call and who have progressively raised their demands which include the dissolution of Kurdish Peshmerga forces, removal of Kurdish groups with cross-border ties to Iran
...a theocratic Shiite state divided among the Medes, the Persians, and the (Arab) Elamites. Formerly a fairly civilized nation ruled by a Shah, it became a victim of Islamic revolution in 1979. The nation is today noted for spontaneously taking over other countries' embassies, maintaining whorehouses run by clergymen, involvement in international drug trafficking, and financing sock puppet militias to extend the regime's influence. The word Iran is a cognate form of Aryan. The abbreviation IRGC is the same idea as Stürmabteilung (or SA). The term Supreme Guide is a the modern version form of either Duce or Führer or maybe both. They hate ~~Jews~~ ~~Zionists~~ Jews. Their economy is based on the production of oil and vitriol...
and ~~The Sick Man of Europe~~ Turkey
...the occupiers of Greek Asia Minor...
, and a full US troop withdrawal from Iraq as a pretext for noncompliance.

In his inaugural address to parliament in mid-May, Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi pledged security reforms including "confining weapons under state control," and in June ordered a committee formed to oversee the separation of political parties and armed factions from the PMF of which Asa’ib Ahl al-Haq was among the first to agree to Zaidi's push, severing ties with their fighters within the PMF.

A committee of senior Coordination Framework figures, including former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, is negotiating the process with the factions.

With the deadline a mere two weeks away, rhetoric among Iraqi politicians has shifted from talk of disarmament toward "organizing" or "restricting" weapons, particularly those capable of striking neighboring countries - a focus sharpened by an attack on Saudi Arabia
...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula, largely made up of sand and oil rigs. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual haj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. Formerly dictatorial and steeped in Olde Tyme Religion, deferring to Salafist holy men on all issues, it has now done a 180 and is making a serious effort to modernize, so as not to be left in the sand by its Gulf Arab neighbors. The holy men have been shoved to the background and the nation is now still dictatorial but somewhat rational. That doesn't make them trustworthy, but it's a start...
's East-West pipeline that an Iraqi government investigation found was launched from Maysan province, heavily damaging its pumping stations.

Iraqi government spokesperson Haider al-Aboudi, speaking to Iraqi channel al-Sharqiya in Gay Paree on Tuesday, reiterated the government's position that it must hold a monopoly on the use of force.

"The reasons that allowed arms to remain outside state control during the events of 2014 no longer exist today... after September 30, Iraq and the Iraqi state will have a monopoly over the tools of force, and this constitutes a return to normal constitutional stipulations," he said.

No other party would be permitted a security role on the government's behalf, he said, warning that groups who fail to comply "will have to face the law."

Link

Iraq

Baghdad is moving to encircle the positions of factions run by the 'Revolutionary Guard' without clashes

2026-08-13

Direct Translation via Google Translate. Edited
[AAWSAT] Iraqi sources revealed on Wednesday the outlines of a government plan after the deadline for restricting weapons on September 30, 2026, which includes "encircling leadership sites" of factions run by the "Revolutionary Guard" in preparation for dismantling them "gradually," while Iranian officials are trying to obstruct or postpone the plan, even though Baghdad "designed a course that does not lead to armed confrontation."

Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi had previously stated that the end of next month would be the deadline for the withdrawal of US forces from the country, and would also mark the end of the deadline for the armed factions to confine their weapons to the state.

"THE ENCIRCLEMENT PLAN"
Sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that the government plan after September 30 calls for the deployment of regular army forces, the Counter-Terrorism Service, and elite units around the operations centers of armed factions, and on roads leading to them, with the aim of restricting the movement of transport and supplies to and from these sites.

The sources explained that government forces will gradually begin setting up checkpoints under the command of officers to monitor the movement of weapons and confiscate them, with a focus on drones and missiles.

According to the sources, these forces will begin imposing a tight security cordon around the armed factions’ centers without any friction, in an operation that ultimately aims to push the factions “either to make a mistake, such as moving drones, or engaging in armed friction, or to abandon their positions in favor of the official institution without firing a single shot.”

A source familiar with sensitive discussions regarding the weapons of the factions run by the Revolutionary Guard said that “government forces will systematically escalate restrictions around those sites, until they reach a stage that allows them to take control of them, which has been difficult to enter for years.”

Military and political leaders reached this formula after discussions about a path that would spare the two sides in the conflict over weapons outside the state a "military confrontation".

Field sources said that “forces from the army and the counter-terrorism service had already begun at the beginning of this week to deploy a number of officers in monitoring detachments in a number of areas and highways, as a trial phase of the plan.”

The sources confirmed that some of these detachments “succeeded during the past few weeks in seizing shipments of drones that were heading to various points in Iraqi regions.”

ROCK CLIFF AND FLINT
Asharq Al-Awsat has learned that the plan focuses primarily on the two locations of Jurf al-Sakhr, a stronghold of Kataib Hezbollah,

…even though they share a name with Lebanese Hezbollah and have long trained with them under IRGC supervision, nonetheless there is absolutely no connection between Kataib Hezbollah and Lebanese Hezbollah — none whatsoever!!!! (Whew! That’s exhausting!

and Jurf al-Nadaf, a stronghold of Harakat al-Nujaba, both of which are south of the capital, Baghdad.

The “Jurf al-Sakhr” area has been one of the most important strongholds of the factions since 2014, and it is believed to have turned into a strategic military base for the factions that includes camps, prisons, warehouses, and factories for missiles and drones, but many believe that it is an operations center for the Iranian “Revolutionary Guard”.

As for the Jurf al-Nadaf area, which is located on the southeastern outskirts of Baghdad, near the Baghdad-Madain road, it has emerged in recent years as a site that includes headquarters and facilities belonging to the “Popular Mobilization Forces” and armed factions associated with it.

Security interest in the area has increased due to its connection, according to Iraqi security sources, to facilities for storing weapons and ammunition, and to military activity by pro-Iranian factions.

In July 2026, security sources said that a joint security force raided a headquarters believed to belong to the “Al-Nujaba Movement” in Jurf al-Nadaf, and that the site contained a drone manufacturing facility, which had been used to launch drones targeting various locations.

Iraqi sources said that “the intelligence assessment indicated that the drone shipments that were seized – or those that were launched towards different targets – are connected to a control center at these sites.”

Although the forces that participated in the raid included the Baghdad Operations Command, the Federal Police, and the Popular Mobilization Forces Security Directorate, it ended with their withdrawal without searching the site.

A well-informed political source said that “the failure of the operation to storm the headquarters of Jurf al-Naddaf gave the military leaders sufficient insight to modify the plan from storming the headquarters to surrounding them and restricting access to them.”

WIDER DISTRIBUTION
The spread of armed factions is not limited to Jurf al-Sakhr and Jurf al-Nadaf, located southwest of Baghdad, but they receive special attention due to their strategic importance and their proximity to the capital.

Other faction sites are located in Tuz Khurmatu, in Salah al-Din province north of Baghdad, and Amerli, also in Salah al-Din province, as well as Camp Ashraf in Diyala province northeast of Baghdad, and sites in the city of Kut, the center of Wasit province, southeast of the capital.

Two main tasks stand out for the factions run by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, according to a senior political official. The first is to be stationed in locations very close to the capital, Baghdad, to ensure the ability to intervene quickly if necessary, which justifies their intensive presence in multiple points and locations there.

The second task focuses on tightening the noose around Sunni areas by controlling their most important geographical strongholds, specifically those close to the Syrian border.

The sources confirmed that “imposing the siege and restricting movement around the facilities of the factions run by the (Revolutionary Guard) is part of a broader plan that includes removing all the brigades of the (Popular Mobilization Forces) from all cities and redistributing them according to a plan determined by the military leadership independently of the faction leaders.”

A senior political official told Asharq Al-Awsat that “the government plan is designed to avoid armed clashes with the factions, and at an advanced stage aims to bring the armed factions into serious negotiations within a national framework with the authorities regarding their status and the future of their members.”

"THE TIME IS NOT RIGHT" FOR IRAN
So far, Kataib Hezbollah, Kataib Sayyid al-Shuhada, and Harakat al-Nujaba, all of which are allied with Iran, refuse to hand over weapons to the state. Activists close to these groups say that “the axis of resistance will not hand over its weapons even after the Americans withdraw,” and they have publicly called, in a defiant tone, for “the state’s weapons to be confined to the factions.”

The government plan has raised concerns among Iranian officials about the fate of strategic weapons in the possession of the factions, and command and control centers where Iranian advisors affiliated with the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps operate.

According to two political sources, Iranian officials informed leaders in the “Coordination Framework” alliance that the timing of the campaign was very bad, because the regional situation requires allies to hold on to their weapons, especially in Iraq.

A political source close to the leader of an influential Shiite party said that “the latter tried to convince the Iranians not to put more pressure on the Prime Minister, because he is already under pressure from the Americans regarding the issue of weapons, and the failure of this government would mean the end of the (Coordination Framework) alliance and its fledgling government, which is facing a severe financial crisis.”

The source added that “the Iranians are pressuring the (coordination framework) to push the government to postpone the implementation of the plan,” adding that “the factions will ultimately try to buy time until the balance of power changes locally and regionally, and the locations of their military assets are changed."

Funny: Iran offered to help Iraq bring armed groups under state control: President Barzani

[Rudaw] Iran
...a theocratic Shiite state divided among the Medes, the Persians, and the (Arab) Elamites. Formerly a fairly civilized nation ruled by a Shah, it became a victim of Islamic revolution in 1979. The nation is today noted for spontaneously taking over other countries' embassies, maintaining whorehouses run by clergymen, involvement in international drug trafficking, and financing sock puppet militias to extend the regime's influence. The word Iran is a cognate form of Aryan. The abbreviation IRGC is the same idea as Stürmabteilung (or SA). The term Supreme Guide is a the modern version form of either Duce or Führer or maybe both. They hate ~~Jews~~ ~~Zionists~~ Jews. Their economy is based on the production of oil and vitriol...
is ready to help Iraq confine weapons outside state control, Kurdistan Region President Nechirvan Barzani said Wednesday citing Iranian officials as informing him, as a September deadline for gangs - including those aligned with Tehran - to disarm looms.

"'Iranian officials said, ’Convey this message to the [Iraqi] Prime Minister [Ali al-Zaidi]: We are ready to help Mr. Zaidi in this matter,’" the Kurdish President said in an interview with the private-owned Iraqi satellite channel, al-Sharqiya TV, adding that the Iranian figures had reiterated this "official stance" to him on behalf of Tehran on two separate occasions.

"They [Iranian officials] emphasized that I should pass this message on to Mr. al-Zaidi," President Barzani added, further quoting them as stating, "If he [Zaidi] wants help from a neighboring country, we [Iran] are ready to provide it."

In his inaugural address before the Iraqi parliament in mid-May, Prime Minister al-Zaidi vowed security reform, including "confining weapons under state control," and in early June he ordered the formation of a committee to oversee the disengagement of political parties and armed factions from the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF).

The PMF was established in 2014 amid the emergence of the Islamic State
...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear western pols talk they're not really Moslems....
(ISIS) in Iraq, which saw large parts of the country's north and west seized by the group.

Created in response to a religious edict issued by Iraq's highest Shiite authority, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the PMF was initially an umbrella organization of roughly 70 predominantly Shiite gangs, with some 250,000 members.

Though a state-funded institution, the PMF comprises factions aligned with the Iran-led ’Axis of Resistance®,’ with the core overlap including the Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq, Kata'ib Hezbollah, Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba, and Kata'ib Sayyed
Sayyed

...Arabic term meaning your/his lordship. Groveling in His Exalted Presence is encouraged...
al-Shuhada gangs.

While some factions have expressed willingness to comply with Zaidi's push, others have cited the continued presence of foreign forces - namely those of the US-led Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS - as justification for refusing to comply.

Moreover, the remarks by Iranian officials come at a time when the same groups included in the disarmament plan - operating under the Islamic Resistance® in Iraq (IRI) umbrella - said in early April that they had carried out more than 750 attacks on alleged US-linked assets in Iraq and the region since the outbreak of the Iran war in late February, as part of Tehran's response.

Zaidi's spokesperson, Sabah al-Numan, told Rudaw in mid-July that a September 30 deadline set by the premier to bring Iraqi gangs' weapons under state control is "fixed and irreversible."

Most recently, the Iraqi premier on Tuesday directed the federal parliament's Security and Defense Committee to draft a law confining weapons to the hands of the state, aiming to consolidate control over armed factions amid heightened regional military tensions and an upcoming US-led coalition withdrawal.

The committee, in turn, vowed support for the al-Zaidi government's measures to strengthen state security and military institutions.

Link

Iraq

Trump tells Iraqi PM that US forces will leave Iraq by September 30 as PM seeks deeper US ties

2026-07-15

[IsraelTimes] US President Donald Trump says US forces will be leaving Iraq because “we don’t think we need the military there anymore.”

“What we do have is the oil companies are all going in now, and they’re doing partnerships with Iraq,” Trump says during an Oval Office meeting with Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi, who began the meeting by declaring that US forces will complete their withdrawal from his country by September 30.

Iraq political blocs back PM Zaidi's push for deeper US ties, seek results for national interests

[Rudaw] Political forces within Iraq's ruling Shiite Coordination Framework, including the Khadamat (Services) Alliance, support Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi's efforts to elevate ties with the United States to a partnership level, a senior Alliance politician told Rudaw on Monday - though he noted that this support remains contingent on tangible outcomes serving Iraq's interests.

"Iraq is on the verge of a significant development regarding the revitalization of American-Iraqi relations," said Hossam al-Rubaie, spokesperson for the bloc, adding that while these ties already exist, "they have not been fully utilized or invested in effectively."

Rubaie said "all [political] groups support" Zaidi's effort to reshape ties with Washington, but that their support "will be conditioned on the results this visit will achieve for Iraq's interests."

The Iraqi premier commenced his high-profile visit to the US on Monday where he is scheduled to meet with senior US officials, including President Donald Trump
...The tack in the backside of the Democratic Party...
Rubaei explained that key dossiers on Zaidi’s agenda are "security, economy, combating corruption, and creating a truly secure environment for American companies to enter, invest, and operate in Iraq."

He further noted that the US must also be "serious about revitalizing ties [with Iraq] within the framework of partnership, rather [than] guardianship or imposed dependency."

While "Iraq needs this partnership, it also possesses many advantages, including its strategic geographic location, its oil wealth, and an attractive economic environment" - advantages Rubaei said should be capitalized on and "translated into tangible and practical achievements."

Moreover, the senior Khadamat Alliance politician pointed to the Strategic Framework Agreement, signed between Baghdad and Washington in 2008 to establish a long-term, comprehensive partnership outside a purely military context.

In recent years, US involvement in Iraq was chiefly defined by combat troops. However,
corruption finds a dozen alibis for its evil deeds...
the Framework Agreement is designed to guide diplomacy, defense, economics, energy, education, law enforcement, and environmental health.

With the US-led Global Coalition to Defeat the Islamic State
...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear western pols talk they're not really Moslems....
(ISIS) set to end its Iraq mission by September, Baghdad has repeatedly affirmed its keenness to anchor its partnership with Washington on the agreement.

Rubaie reiterated "the need to activate the provisions" of the accord and to "examine why many of its clauses have yet to be implemented by the American side," asserting that what Iraq needs is "real and effective implementation" of the 2008 pact.

In early June, Iraqi Prime Minister Zaidi ordered the formation of a committee to oversee the disengagement of political parties and armed factions from the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), amid a wider effort by the newly appointed premier to bring paramilitary groups and their arms under state control.

The PMF was established in 2014 during the Islamic State (ISIS) emergence in Syria and Iraq in which large parts of Iraq's north and west were seized.

Created in response to a fatwa, a decree by Iraq's highest Shiite authority, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the PMF was initially an umbrella organization of roughly 70 predominantly Shiite gangs with 250,000 members.

I didn’t realize it was so many.

Functioning as a state-funded institution, the PMF includes armed factions widely believed to be cooperating with the Iran-led ’Axis of Resistance®’ - with its core overlap including Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq, Kata'ib Hezbollah, Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba, and Kata'ib Sayyed
Sayyed

...Arabic term meaning your/his lordship. Groveling in His Exalted Presence is encouraged...
al-Shuhada.

Several of these groups have already begun integrating. By the end of September, with the culmination of the Global Coalition's mission in Iraq, gangs acting outside state control are expected to disarm completely.

Rubaie expressed confidence that the Zaidi government's push would succeed, as "there is a suitable national framework for implementing" this, and it has become "a major popular demand."

He further explained that the weapons in question are not limited to armed factions. "There are many other uncontrolled weapons that also contribute to instability in Iraq's security environment," he stated. Without a "clear and stable security environment," he warned, "companies will not come to invest in Iraq or create employment opportunities across various sectors."

Still, Rubaie said the incumbent government has "genuine willingness" to advance this initiative, adding that while it "has already made good progress, it could achieve even more positive results by mid-September."

Link

Iraq

PMF revises death toll to 3 in Baghdad blast Tuesday linked to ISIS remnants

2025-11-10

[Rudaw] Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) have revised the corpse count to three members who were killed in a blast in Baghdad, reportedly caused by leftover explosives from the Islamic State

...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear western pols talk they're not really Moslems....
(ISIS) on Tuesday.

In a late Tuesday statement, the organization said that three of its members were killed while performing their duties in Baghdad. It also wished "a speedy recovery to the maimed," without specifying their exact number.

Earlier that day, the PMF had reported that one of its members "was martyred and two others were maimed as a result of an accidental explosion that occurred while conducting a technical duty in the Juraf al-Nadaf area in Baghdad."

The explosion was reportedly triggered by "kabooms left behind by the terrorist ISIS gangs," which were stored inside one of the PMF’s depots in the southern part of the capital.

"The incident was brought under control, and the necessary measures were taken," the PMF added, emphasizing the continued efforts of its teams to "clear areas of terrorist remnants and safeguard citizens’ lives."

The PMF was established in 2014 during the ISIS blitz offensive, when the group seized control of large parts of northern and western Iraq. Its formation followed a religious edict, or Fatwa, issued by Iraq’s highest Shiite authority, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani.

The umbrella organization consists of roughly 70 predominantly Shiite gangs, with an estimated 250,000 members.

Link

Iraq

Iran-backed Iraqi armed group claims Israeli attack on its forces imminent

2025-08-21

Pay attention to US!!!!

[Rudaw] The Iran-aligned Iraqi gang Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba says it is under imminent threat of Israeli attacks, a bigwig from the group told Rudaw on Wednesday, while also voicing strong support for a controversial bill aimed at formalizing the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF).

"We are facing real and continuous threats," said Hussein al-Moussawi, deputy secretary-general of Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba. "We have received information about [Israel planning to] launch attacks on our forces."

Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba is a powerful faction within the PMF, comprising its 12th brigade.

The PMF is an umbrella organization of primarily Shiite armed factions that was formed in 2014 following a religious edict, fatwa, by Iraq’s supreme Shiite religious authority, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani. The edict came against the backdrop of the blitz offensive launched by the Islamic State
...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear western pols talk they're not really Moslems....
(ISIS), which saw the group overrun nearly a third of Iraqi territory.

Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba also operates with a significant degree of autonomy and is considered a key component of the Iran-led "Axis of Resistance®," alongside groups like Asa’ib Ahl al-Haq and Kata’ib Hezbollah.

It is also believed to be a core part of the "Islamic Resistance® in Iraq" - a loose network of Iran-backed gangs that emerged following the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas
Hamas

..the braying voice of Islamic Resistance®,...
war in October 2023. The entity has claimed dozens of attacks on US interests in Iraq, Syria, and Jordan since the war began, ostensibly aimed at pressuring Washington to reduce its support for Israel.

SUPPORT FOR PMF BILL
Moussawi additionally reaffirmed to Rudaw his group’s support for the PMF bill currently under debate in Iraq’s Parliament, describing it as a step that "gives legitimacy to the Iraqi government."

The bill seeks to institutionalize the PMF as a permanent part of Iraq’s formal security forces, granting it a dedicated budget, hierarchical structure, and even a military academy. Proponents, largely from the Shiite-led Coordination Framework, argue the law is essential to recognize the PMF's contributions in the war against ISIS and to provide long-term benefits to its fighters.

However,
a good lie finds more believers than a bad truth...
critics - including the United States - warn that the legislation could entrench Iranian influence in Iraq by providing Iran-aligned factions with financial independence and increased political leverage within Baghdad.

The senior Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba official also welcomed the US-led coalition’s planned drawdown from Iraq.

A senior advisor to Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudan
...a Moslem country located in the Horn of Africa. It is noted for its affinity for rule by ex- or current generals, its holy men, and for the oppression of the native Afro population by its Arab conquerors. South Sudan, populated mostly by the natives, split off from Sudan proper, which left North and South Darfur to be oppressed by the guys with turbans...
i confirmed on Sunday that coalition forces will withdraw from "their headquarters in the capital Baghdad and the Ain al-Asad base in [western Iraq’s Anbar province]" by September-end, adding that the full conclusion of the coalition’s mission is scheduled for September 2026.

The US-led Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS was formed in 2014 under President Barack Obama
I inhaled. That was the point...
to degrade and ultimately defeat the group. Its military operations in Iraq began in October 2014 with ~~Arclight~~ airstrike
...KABOOM!...
s and later expanded to include advising and training Iraqi security forces.

The coalition consists of over 60 countries and international organizations, including key members such as the US, United Kingdom, La Belle France, Germany, Canada, Australia, and several Middle Eastern nations. Member states contribute through military personnel, equipment, training, and financial support. As of mid-2025, the US maintains around 2,500 troops in Iraq.

However,
a good lie finds more believers than a bad truth...
the coalition forces presence in Iraq became a contentious issue after the US strike that killed Iran’s Quds Force commander Qasem Soleimani and Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, the deputy chief of Iraq’s PMF, near Baghdad International Airport in January 2020. Days later, 168 members of Iraq’s 329-member parliament voted to expel foreign forces from the country.

Link

Iraq

Pope Francis says survived two assassination attempts during 2021 Iraq trip

2024-12-18

Presumably the would-be killers were ISIS or ISIS-inspired.

[Rudaw] Iraqi security forces foiled two liquidation attempts targeting Pope Francis

...Argentine liberation theologist, born Jorge Mario Bergoglio. He was elected pope in 2013. Rather than setting up shop in Avignon, where he belongs, the first Jesuit Pope chose to reside in the Domus Sanctae Marthae guesthouse instead of the papal apartments. That was to show how humble he is. He is big on climate change, against consumerism, and in favor of throwing a blanket over homosexual activity within the clergy. He's not real sure about the Resurrection, about Christ's divinity, and a few other things that would have gotten him burned at the stake a few hundred years ago, but he's hot for a certain South American Earth Mother Goddess...
during his historic trip to the country three years ago, the pontiff says in his forthcoming biography as reported by the Italian media on Tuesday.

In the book, set to be released next month, the pope describes warnings from British intelligence about the plots, including one involving "a woman packed with explosives, a young kamikaze, was heading to djinn-infested Mosul
... the home of a particularly ferocious and hairy djinn...
to blow herself up during the papal visit," and another where "a van had also set off at full speed with the same intent," as detailed in an excerpt published by the Italian daily Corriere della Sera.

The incidents occurred in Mosul, the former stronghold where the Islamic State
...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear western pols talk they're not really Moslems....
(ISIS) declared its caliphate in 2014, leaving the city devastated after its defeat in 2017.

In March 2021, Pope Francis made a historic visit to Iraq, becoming the first pontiff to visit the country. The trip included stops in Baghdad, Mosul, and Najaf, where he met Iraq's highest Shiite authority Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani. The pope concluded his visit by holding a Holy Mass in Erbil, delivering messages of peace and coexistence.

In Mosul, the Pope held prayers for victims of ISIS and visited other significant Christian sites in the city.

"One of the world’s oldest cities," Vatican News cited the pontiff as saying, "Overflowing with history and traditions, which had seen different civilizations come and go and was a symbol of peaceful coexistence of diverse cultures in one country - Arabs, Kurds, Armenians, Turks, Christians, Syriacs - appeared to my eyes as a field of rubble after three years of occupation by the Islamic State, which had chosen it as its stronghold."

Iraqi authorities have not commented on the two liquidation attempts.

Link

Iraq

Sadr-linked activist found killed in Babil

2024-02-20

Intramural games — they’re Shiites all.

[Rudaw] The body of an Iraqi activist linked to influential Shiite figure Moqtada Tater al-Sadr
Moqtada <q>Tater</q> al-Sadr

...hereditary Iraqi holy man and leader of a political movement in Iraq. He had his hereditary rival al-Khoei assassinated shortly after the holy rival's appearance out of exile in 2003. Formerly an Iranian catspaw, lately he's gagged over some of their more outlandish antics, then went back to catspawry...
was found killed in Babil province on Monday morning, a day after he was kidnapped by an unidentified gang in front of his house.

Babil security forces found the body of Aysar al-Khafaji dumped on the highway Jableh area, north of Babil, according to a statement from the Iraqi interior ministry.

"At a time when the security services in the Ministry of Interior are seeking to establish security and stability in different regions of the country, criminal elements are trying from time to time to disturb this stability, something that the Ministry of Interior will not allow," read the statement.

The Khafaji tribe released a strongly-worded statement later in the day, holding the Iraqi government responsible for Aysar’s death and calling on relevant authorities to uncover the perpetrators as soon as possible and hold them accountable.

"Condemnations and denunciations have become useless... Enough silence. Enough bloodshed," said the tribe.

Videos published on social media of the funeral processions depicted a member of the Khafaji family saying that they will grant Babil governor Adnan Faihan 24 hours to uncover the killers "otherwise all offices shall become our target."

Faihan is a senior member of Asaib Ahl al-Haq (AAH), a pro-Iran
...a theocratic Shiite state divided among the Medes, the Persians, and the (Arab) Elamites. Formerly a fairly civilized nation ruled by a Shah, it became a victim of Islamic revolution in 1979. The nation is today noted for spontaneously taking over other countries' embassies, maintaining whorehouses run by clergymen, involvement in international drug trafficking, and financing sock puppet militias to extend the regime's influence. The word Iran is a cognate form of Aryan. The abbreviation IRGC is the same idea as Stürmabteilung (or SA). The term Supreme Guide is a the modern version form of either Duce or Führer or maybe both. They hate ~~Jews~~ ~~Zionists~~ Jews. Their economy is based on the production of oil and vitriol...
gang and rival of Sadr’s Saraya al-Salam militia.

The interior ministry noted that security forces have found "important leads" regarding the suspects, stressing that the perpetrators will be brought to justice.

Clashes between Saraya al-Salam and Asaib Ahl al-Haq are a common occurrence in southern Iraqi provinces.

Asaib Ahl al-Haq is part of the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), an umbrella group of Shiite paramilitary forces that was formed in 2014 to fight the Islamic State
...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear western pols talk they're not really Moslems....
(ISIS) under a fatwa from Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani. A number of forces within the umbrella group are backed by Iran.

Saraya al-Salam was founded by Sadr himself in 2014 and considered as a revived version of Sadr’s Mahdi army, turbans who fought the Americans following their invasion in 2003.

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Iraq

Suspected clashes between rival Shiite factions erupt in Basra

2022-09-02

[Rudaw] Clashes reportedly broke out between rival Shiite militia groups in Iraq’s southern city of Basra on Thursday morning, days after deadly fighting between militias of Shiite holy man Moqtada Tater al-Sadr
...hereditary Iraqi holy man and leader of a political movement in Iraq. He had his hereditary rival, al-Khoei, assassinated only a few hours after the holy rival's appearance out of exile in 2003. Formerly an Iranian catspaw, lately he's gagged over some of their more outlandish antics, then went back to catspawry...
and Iran-backed factions in Baghdad left at least 30 people killed.

A well-informed civil society source, who requested complete anonymity due to the sensitivity of the topic, told Rudaw English that Sadr-affiliated Saraya al-Salam and pro-Iran
Iran

...The nation is noted for spontaneously taking over other countries' embassies, maintaining whorehouses run by clergymen, involvement in international drug trafficking, and financing sock puppet militias to extend the regime's influence...
Asaib Ahl al-Haq (AAH) engaged in heavy confrontations which continued from 2am to 6:30am on Thursday morning in Basra, adding that the number of casualties remains unknown.

Videos circulating on social media and various telegram channels linked to both sides purportedly showed festivities continuing on Thursday morning, despite Sadr calling on his supporters to withdraw and end the violence on Tuesday.

Sources told Rudaw that the fighting broke out in response to the killing of a member of Saraya al-Salam outside the offices of Asaib Ahl al-Haq.

The Iraqi Security Media Cell said "conflicting reports" have been circulated on social media regarding the incident in Basra, confirming the death of one and the injury of another, without specifying the nature of the festivities or naming any parties involved.

Security forces have arrested a number of suspects and the situation is under control, the statement added.

The source that spoke to Rudaw English claimed that the authorities in Basra represent certain political parties, and believed that there may have been attempts to "cover" the incident as to not incite further instability, particularly at a time of soaring tension.

Salih Mohammed al-Iraqi, a close associate of Sadr, later in the day "warned" the villainous-looking Qais al-Khazali
......sinister-looking Iranian stooge, Secretary General of Persian proxy militia Asaib Ahl al-Haq, wannabe Nasrallah......
, secretary-general of AAH, to restrain his "disrespectful militias" and "mad dogs."

"If you don’t absolve yourself from the killers and criminals following you or prove that they do not belong to you then you are disrespectful too," said Iraqi.

Khazali responded to Iraqi’s statement, telling his supporters to refrain from negatively responding to the comments that have been made about him, and asking the AAH to close down all of their offices "until further notice."

"Any office that they want to burn, let them burn it and do not care about that, because God will compensate you more than you would expect," Khazali said.

Clashes between Saraya al-Salam and Iran-backed militia groups broke out on Monday after Sadr announced he was quitting politics. Heavy gunfire took place inside Baghdad’s Green Zone, with footage on social media depicting both sides using heavy machine guns. The fighting also spread to other Iraqi provinces, including Basra. According to the latest numbers by AFP, 30 people were killed and 500 others were maimed as a result of the ~~violent~~ mostly peaceful festivities.

AAH is part of the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF or Hashd al-Shaabi), an umbrella group of Shiite paramilitary forces that was formed in 2014 to fight the Islamic State
...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear western pols talk they're not really Moslems....
(ISIS) under a fatwa from Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani. A number of forces within the umbrella group are backed by Iran.

Saraya al-Salam was founded by Sadr himself in 2014 and considered as a revived version of Sadr’s Mahdi army, bully boyz who fought the Americans following their invasion in 2003.

Link

Iraq

US sentences Asaib Ahl al-Haq former member to four years in prison

2022-05-08

[Rudaw] A former member of an Iran-backed Shiite militia group was sentenced to four years in prison by the US on Friday for "lying" to US officials during his immigration application process, announced the Department of Justice late Friday.

The 36-year-old Chasib Hafedh Saadoon al-Fawadi, an Iraqi who lives in New York, was sentenced to 48 months in prison after allegedly admitting to submitting false information to the US Citizenship and Immigration Services while applying for permanent residency in the country in 2017, stated the US Department of Justice.

Al-Fawadi had previously denied being a member of any groups engaged in ~~violent~~ mostly peaceful activities, but was later revealed that he had been a member of the Asaib Ahl al-Haq (AAH) militia group until he migrated to the US in 2016, according to the Department.

Asaib Ahl al-Haq is part of the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF or Hashd al-Shaabi), an umbrella group of Shiite paramilitary forces that was formed in 2014 to fight the Islamic State
...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear western pols talk they're not really Moslems....
(ISIS) under a fatwa from Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani. A number of forces within the umbrella group are backed by Iran.

US State Department designated the AAH as a terrorist organization in January 2020 and its leaders the villainous-looking Qais al-Khazali
......sinister-looking Iranian stooge, Secretary General of Persian proxy militia Asaib Ahl al-Haq, wannabe Nasrallah......
and Laith al-Khazali as terrorists.

The statement added that as a part of the murderous Moslem group, al-Fawadi had travelled to Syria in 2013 to engage in combat operations that supported the Syrian regime. "Al Fawadi concealed his travel to Syria, Iran, and Jordan when he applied for refugee classification and again in his application for permanent resident status," read the statement.

The former member of the AAH claimed during his immigration application that he was being persecuted by the AAH for refusing to help the murderous Moslem group in kidnapping Sunni citizens of Iraq.

Investigation into al-Fawadi’s case by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI
FBI

...Formerly one of the world's premier criminal investigation organizations, something for a nation to be proud of. Now it's a political arm of the Deep State oligarchy that is willing to trump up charges, suppress evidence, or take out insurance policies come election time...
) and Department of Homeland Security-Homeland Security Investigations began in September 2020. He will be removed from the US upon his release from the federal prison without any further immigrations proceedings, according to his sentence.

Link

Iraq

Kataib Hezbollah dissolves militia following Sadr’s call

2021-11-20

[Rudaw] The hardline pro-Iran
Iran

...a theocratic Shiite state divided among the Medes, the Persians, and the (Arab) Elamites....
militia Kataib

Hezbollah announced on Friday the dissolution of one of its gangs, following a call from Shiite holy man Moqtada Tater al-Sadr
...hereditary Iraqi holy man and leader of a political movement in Iraq. He had his hereditary rival, al-Khoei, assassinated only a few hours after the holy rival's appearance out of exile in 2003. Formerly an Iranian catspaw, lately he's gagged over some of their more outlandish antics, then went back to catspawry...
for militias to disband and leave all weapons in control of the state.

Abu Ali al-Askari, a senior Kataib Hezbollah official, said on Telegram that "in response to what was published by one of the friendly parties regarding the initiative to disband its military forces," his militia group has decided to dissolve its Saraya al-Difa al-Shaabi (Popular Defense Brigades), ordering it to "stop all its activities and close its headquarters."

When the Islamic State
...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear western pols talk they're not really Moslems....
group (ISIS) seized controlled swathes of Syrian and Iraqi land in 2014, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani called for Iraqis to take up arms and defend the country. This paved the way for the formation militia groups under the umbrella of the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF, or Hashd al-Shaabi). The PMF has since been absorbed into the Iraqi security forces, but many of the militias operate outside of the control of the state and some are backed by Iran.

Sadr, whose movement won the most seats in last month’s parliamentary election and is set to lead the next government, on Thursday called on the militias to disband if they want to join his cabinet. Political parties affiliated with the pro-Iran militias did poorly in the election and their supporters have rejected the results and staged protests. Askari responded to Sadr saying that Kataib Hezbollah would give up their weapons only after Sadr’s gang, Saraya al-Salam, and the Kurdish Peshmerga did so.

On Friday, Sadr announced he was shutting down one of his brigades. "As a goodwill gesture from me, I announce the dissolution of the al-Yum al-Wuud [the Promised Day] Brigade, and the closure of their headquarters," he tweeted. He said the group had previously handed over its weapons and that anyone in the brigade who still has a weapon must turn it in within 48 hours.

"I hope this step will be the beginning of the dissolution of gangs as well as the handover of their weapons and closure of their bases," he said.

Askari said that the members of the disbanded Popular Defense Brigades will be embedded within the PMF and maintain their entitlements. He also said he hoped that Sadr would transfer control of his three brigades over to the PMF and "make understandings with the leaders of the Peshmerga to complete its dissolution and be embedded into the Iraqi security forces."

The Peshmerga have not immediately commented on Askari’s statement.

Link

Iraq

How Iraq's Al-Hashd Al-Shaabi turned into an Iranian foreign policy instrument

2021-06-15

[ARABNEWS] It is seven years since their yellow flag first appeared in the campaign against ISIS, the hard boy group which seized swathes of northern Iraq and eastern Syria in 2014. After ISIS captured large parts of northern Iraq, including djinn-infested Mosul
... the home of a particularly ferocious and hairy djinn...
, in 2014, the fighters of al-Hashd al-Shaabi, or Popular Mobilization Forces, won the admiration of many Iraqis for heeding Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani’s call to arms.

Since then, the umbrella organization of mainly Shiite militias has, however, adopted a more sinister cause. Last month, a convoy of Hashd fighters mounted a show of strength in Baghdad’s Green Zone, the center of Iraq’s political life, and forced the country’s elected leaders to release Qassim Musleh, a Hashd commander close to Iran

Link

Iraq

Iraqi militia threatens escalation of operations to expel US forces

2021-04-03

[Rudaw] The head of a powerful Iranian-backed Iraq militia vowed to continue and increase "resistance operations" with the goal of forcing American troops out of the country. th4 villainous-looking Qais al-Khazali

...... Iranian stooge, Secretary General of Persian proxy militia Asaib Ahl al-Haq, wannabe Nasrallah......
, the secretary-general of Asaib Ahl al-Haq and a subject of United States sanctions, made the comments in a speech on Thursday in Dhi Qar province, southern Iraq, just days ahead of strategic talks between Baghdad and Washington.

Armed factions opposed to US forces in Iraq will continue to "carry guns" in order to "end the US military occupation," said Khazali, according to media affiliated with the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF).

"There is no way for American military bases to function in Iraq, not at Ain al-Assad base in Anbar, nor at Harir Base in Erbil, nor anywhere else," Khazali said.

Asaib Ahl al-Haq is part of the PMF, an umbrella network of Shiite militia groups that was formed in 2014 to fight the Islamic State
...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear western pols talk they're not really Moslems....
(ISIS) under a fatwa (decree) from Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani. A number of groups within its ranks are close to Iran. They frequently attack US positions throughout Iraq and are accused of committing human rights
One man's rights are another man's existential threat.
violations, including killing activists and protesters.

Khazali said that current operations "will continue and increase in quantity and quality if the United States does not agree to close the bases in western, central and northern Iraq."

"The north of Iraq belongs to Iraq only, not another country, and we will fight and sacrifice for it," he added, referring to the Kurdistan Region.

An annual human rights report released by the US State Department on Tuesday accused the Iraqi government of negligence in protecting its citizens and failing to take serious action against the militias.

The report accused Asaib Ahl al-Haq of illegally seizing state property. "Abu Nawas Theater, one of the oldest theaters in Baghdad, was seized by a pro-Iranian militia, Asaib Ahl al-Haq, in November to support its activities," the report stated.

On April 7, Baghdad and Washington are due to hold a new round of strategic talks that will touch on US force presence in Iraq, which the US says is solely focused on the counter-ISIS mission.

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