After Mosul victory, Iraq mulls future of Shiite militias
The Canadian Press The Canadian PressJuly 24, 2017
After Mosul victory, Iraq mulls future of Shiite militias
More
NAJAF, Iraq — In the wake of victory against the Islamic State group in Mosul, Iraq's political, religious and military leaders are debating the future of the country's powerful Shiite militias — the tens of thousands of men who answered a religious call to arms three years ago and played a critical role in beating back the extremists.
Some are demanding the mostly Iranian-backed forces be disbanded but the militias say their sacrifices on the battlefield and the fact they were sanctioned by Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi have earned them a permanent place in the hierarchy of Iraq's security forces.
The Shiite militias stepped into a vacuum when the Iraqi army largely dissolved after IS overran Mosul and pushed within 80 miles (130 kilometres ) of the Iraqi capital.
Shiite Sheikh Fadil al-Bidayri was among the clerics at an emergency meeting in the holy city of Najaf in June 2014, when Iraq's Shiite religious elite — led by the country's top Shiite cleric, Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani — issued a call to arms as a last-ditch effort to protect Baghdad.
Tens of thousands of men, many of them members of the long-established Shiite militias with close ties to Iran, answered al-Sistani. In the days that followed, Iraq was flooded with training, money and weapons from Tehran. Billboards praising the groups — depicting Iraqi and Iranian paramilitary leaders side by side — popped up across Baghdad, alongside posters of martyrs honouring the fallen.
The government-sanctioned groups became known as the Popular Mobilization Forces, known as Hashed al-Shaabi in Arabic.
Although the Shiite militias did not play a central role in the battle for the city of Mosul itself, they moved into the deserts held by IS west of the city, massing around the town of Tal Afar and taking a border crossing between Iraq and Syria. They also took control of highways bisecting the Sunni heartland in western Iraq and used as vital military and civilian supply lines.
In past fights against IS, including the operation to retake for the cities of Tikrit and Fallujah, the Shiite militias were accused of sectarian killings and other abuses against minority Sunnis. They acknowledge some abuses may have occurred but say those responsible have been disciplined.
Over the past three years, as the military fight against IS in Iraq pushed the extremists back, Iran's influence in the country grew.
"We always knew that Iran would use this (call to arms) to increase its own power in Iraq, but we had no other choice," said al-Bidayri, recounting the meeting in Najaf and the panic-filled days after the 2014 fall of Mosul.
Al-Bidayri says now that Mosul has been retaken and the Iraqi military has been partially rebuilt, he believes the Shiite militias should be disbanded, to curb Iranian influence in Iraq and reduce sectarian tensions. The elderly sheikh, like much of Iraq's religious establishment in Najaf, is a staunch nationalist and wary of Iran's growing influence.
"From the very beginning ... Iran used every opportunity to get involved in Iraq," al-Bidayri said. "Each time they used the protection of the Shiite people as an excuse."
Iraq's influential Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr also called for the militias to disband during a March anti-government rally that saw thousands of his supporters fill the streets of Baghdad.
According to the 2017 Iraqi budget, the government-sanctioned Popular Mobilization Forces now number about 122,000 fighters. The umbrella is dominated by Shiite militias but also includes Sunni and Christian groups.
"The Hashed (Shiite militias) will remain . and our relationship with Iran will remain," said Hadi al-Amiri, a senior leader of the Badr Brigade, one of Iraq's most powerful Shiite militias.
Al-Amiri said IS' insurgent capabilities will pose a long-term security threat to Iraq after the military fight against the group is concluded.
Iraq's prime minister has also repeatedly professed his backing for the Popular Mobilization Forces, telling reporters at a press conference last week that they "must remain at least for years, as the terrorism threat still exists."
When asked if the Shiite militias would play a role in the fight for Tal Afar or move into Syria, Ahmad Ghanem, a member of the Popular Mobilization Forces training at a camp in Najaf said "we are waiting for instructions ... ready to move wherever they order us."
As the conventional fight against IS winds down, it's unlikely Iraq's existing security forces will be able to absorb all the militia factions.
"If you add up all of the demands from all the different factions and militia leaders, and then you look at how much actual power and money Iraq has to distribute to them, their claims are like 250 per cent of whatever pie there is to be divided," said Nathaniel Rabkin, managing editor of Inside Iraqi Politics, a political risk assessment newsletter.
Rabkin said he doubted the groups would be content with patrolling rural areas or hunting so-called IS "sleeper cells."
"They want to have real power and control," Rabkin said. "So I think there's going to be a lot of disappointed people with small to medium-sized militias running around Iraq six months to a year from now."
On the outskirts of Najaf, graves of militiamen who died battling IS have swelled among the plots in Wadi al-Salam, the well-known Shiite graveyard that is also the world's largest. Garlands of plastic flowers adorn headstones bearing the crests of the most powerful militia groups: the Badr Brigades, Saraya Salam and Kataib Hezbollah.
Abdullah Abbas, a thin 18-year-old from Najaf, guarded a plot of graves of Katib Imam Ali fighters, a small militia closely tied to Iran and active both in Iraq and Syria.
In 2013, he left school at age 14, to become a fighter. The militia at the time mainly fought in Syria where it propped up President Bashar Assad's government. Since then, he has bounced between Syria and Iraq.
Abbas said that if the government decides to dissolve the Shiite militias, he could easily find better paying work as a labourer . But he admitted he couldn't imagine life without the purpose and prestige of being a militia fighter.
"I don't think a normal life is an option for me now," he said, shaking his head. "I can't imagine going back to what it was like before."
___
Associated Press writers Sinan Salaheddin in Baghdad and Bassam Hatoum in Najaf, Iraq, contributed to this report.
Susannah George, The Associated Press
The Canadian Press The Canadian PressJuly 24, 2017
After Mosul victory, Iraq mulls future of Shiite militias
More
NAJAF, Iraq — In the wake of victory against the Islamic State group in Mosul, Iraq's political, religious and military leaders are debating the future of the country's powerful Shiite militias — the tens of thousands of men who answered a religious call to arms three years ago and played a critical role in beating back the extremists.
Some are demanding the mostly Iranian-backed forces be disbanded but the militias say their sacrifices on the battlefield and the fact they were sanctioned by Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi have earned them a permanent place in the hierarchy of Iraq's security forces.
The Shiite militias stepped into a vacuum when the Iraqi army largely dissolved after IS overran Mosul and pushed within 80 miles (130 kilometres ) of the Iraqi capital.
Shiite Sheikh Fadil al-Bidayri was among the clerics at an emergency meeting in the holy city of Najaf in June 2014, when Iraq's Shiite religious elite — led by the country's top Shiite cleric, Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani — issued a call to arms as a last-ditch effort to protect Baghdad.
Tens of thousands of men, many of them members of the long-established Shiite militias with close ties to Iran, answered al-Sistani. In the days that followed, Iraq was flooded with training, money and weapons from Tehran. Billboards praising the groups — depicting Iraqi and Iranian paramilitary leaders side by side — popped up across Baghdad, alongside posters of martyrs honouring the fallen.
The government-sanctioned groups became known as the Popular Mobilization Forces, known as Hashed al-Shaabi in Arabic.
Although the Shiite militias did not play a central role in the battle for the city of Mosul itself, they moved into the deserts held by IS west of the city, massing around the town of Tal Afar and taking a border crossing between Iraq and Syria. They also took control of highways bisecting the Sunni heartland in western Iraq and used as vital military and civilian supply lines.
In past fights against IS, including the operation to retake for the cities of Tikrit and Fallujah, the Shiite militias were accused of sectarian killings and other abuses against minority Sunnis. They acknowledge some abuses may have occurred but say those responsible have been disciplined.
Over the past three years, as the military fight against IS in Iraq pushed the extremists back, Iran's influence in the country grew.
"We always knew that Iran would use this (call to arms) to increase its own power in Iraq, but we had no other choice," said al-Bidayri, recounting the meeting in Najaf and the panic-filled days after the 2014 fall of Mosul.
Al-Bidayri says now that Mosul has been retaken and the Iraqi military has been partially rebuilt, he believes the Shiite militias should be disbanded, to curb Iranian influence in Iraq and reduce sectarian tensions. The elderly sheikh, like much of Iraq's religious establishment in Najaf, is a staunch nationalist and wary of Iran's growing influence.
"From the very beginning ... Iran used every opportunity to get involved in Iraq," al-Bidayri said. "Each time they used the protection of the Shiite people as an excuse."
Iraq's influential Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr also called for the militias to disband during a March anti-government rally that saw thousands of his supporters fill the streets of Baghdad.
According to the 2017 Iraqi budget, the government-sanctioned Popular Mobilization Forces now number about 122,000 fighters. The umbrella is dominated by Shiite militias but also includes Sunni and Christian groups.
"The Hashed (Shiite militias) will remain . and our relationship with Iran will remain," said Hadi al-Amiri, a senior leader of the Badr Brigade, one of Iraq's most powerful Shiite militias.
Al-Amiri said IS' insurgent capabilities will pose a long-term security threat to Iraq after the military fight against the group is concluded.
Iraq's prime minister has also repeatedly professed his backing for the Popular Mobilization Forces, telling reporters at a press conference last week that they "must remain at least for years, as the terrorism threat still exists."
When asked if the Shiite militias would play a role in the fight for Tal Afar or move into Syria, Ahmad Ghanem, a member of the Popular Mobilization Forces training at a camp in Najaf said "we are waiting for instructions ... ready to move wherever they order us."
As the conventional fight against IS winds down, it's unlikely Iraq's existing security forces will be able to absorb all the militia factions.
"If you add up all of the demands from all the different factions and militia leaders, and then you look at how much actual power and money Iraq has to distribute to them, their claims are like 250 per cent of whatever pie there is to be divided," said Nathaniel Rabkin, managing editor of Inside Iraqi Politics, a political risk assessment newsletter.
Rabkin said he doubted the groups would be content with patrolling rural areas or hunting so-called IS "sleeper cells."
"They want to have real power and control," Rabkin said. "So I think there's going to be a lot of disappointed people with small to medium-sized militias running around Iraq six months to a year from now."
On the outskirts of Najaf, graves of militiamen who died battling IS have swelled among the plots in Wadi al-Salam, the well-known Shiite graveyard that is also the world's largest. Garlands of plastic flowers adorn headstones bearing the crests of the most powerful militia groups: the Badr Brigades, Saraya Salam and Kataib Hezbollah.
Abdullah Abbas, a thin 18-year-old from Najaf, guarded a plot of graves of Katib Imam Ali fighters, a small militia closely tied to Iran and active both in Iraq and Syria.
In 2013, he left school at age 14, to become a fighter. The militia at the time mainly fought in Syria where it propped up President Bashar Assad's government. Since then, he has bounced between Syria and Iraq.
Abbas said that if the government decides to dissolve the Shiite militias, he could easily find better paying work as a labourer . But he admitted he couldn't imagine life without the purpose and prestige of being a militia fighter.
"I don't think a normal life is an option for me now," he said, shaking his head. "I can't imagine going back to what it was like before."
___
Associated Press writers Sinan Salaheddin in Baghdad and Bassam Hatoum in Najaf, Iraq, contributed to this report.
Susannah George, The Associated Press
Today at 7:20 am by Rocky
» Did Barzani agree in Tehran to end the presence of Iranian groups in Kurdistan? - urgent
Today at 7:16 am by Rocky
» Al-Sudani: We are establishing a new situation for the global energy market through the Development
Today at 7:14 am by Rocky
» Al-Sudani: The government program devoted a wide scope to the government’s vision for oil and gas in
Today at 7:11 am by Rocky
» Al-Awadi: Ending the work of the UNAMI mission is consistent with the government’s vision in this fi
Today at 7:10 am by Rocky
» utube 5/9/24 MM&C 0:02 / 46:46 PM - Al-Sudani - Golden Opportunity - Private Sector - Contra
Today at 5:34 am by Rocky
» utube MM&C 5/11/24 Iraqi Dinar - IQD Update - International - IraqTiming - 2024 Budget Schedule - Sp
Today at 5:32 am by Rocky
» MM&C Floating the dinar" returns to the forefront.. Will the Central Bank of Iraq resort to it and w
Today at 5:24 am by Rocky
» The Secretary of the Ministry of Defense meets with the Commander of the NATO mission
Today at 5:17 am by Rocky
» Expert: The stability of the economy is linked to the political situation
Today at 5:13 am by Rocky
» A parliamentary request to lift the injustice against 20,000 Iraqi employees
Today at 5:09 am by Rocky
» Parliamentary Finance criticizes the government's failure to send the budget schedules
Today at 5:08 am by Rocky
» Minister of Oil: The 5th and 6th licensing rounds will take place within the framework of exploratio
Today at 5:07 am by Rocky
» Al-Sudani: Iraq is a difficult number in the global market in the field of energy
Today at 5:06 am by Rocky
» Al-Khanjar rejects Al-Halbousi’s request to head Parliament
Today at 5:05 am by Rocky
» Revealing the date of the arrival of the 2024 budget schedules
Today at 5:04 am by Rocky
» Al-Halbousi nominates Talal Al-Zubaie for presidency of the House of Representatives
Today at 5:03 am by Rocky
» "A coup in Iraqi universities"... Replacement of presidents and deans under the new education law
Today at 5:01 am by Rocky
» Al-Sudani: Iraq is a difficult number in the equation of energy and oil wealth in the region and the
Today at 5:00 am by Rocky
» Minister of Oil: We hope to announce an increase in Iraq’s oil reserves to 160 billion barrels
Today at 4:58 am by Rocky
» Iraq's mass graves...stories that did not end with the burial of their owners, and the "legacy of IS
Today at 4:57 am by Rocky
» Pictures: New licenses in Iraq to extract “huge” quantities of oil and gas
Today at 4:56 am by Rocky
» Transport reopens the Baghdad - Samarra railway line
Today at 4:55 am by Rocky
» Al-Awadi: A government decision to provide sovereign guarantees and guarantees to encourage the inve
Today at 4:54 am by Rocky
» Oil clarifies the mechanism for investing grant funds and licensing contracts
Today at 4:51 am by Rocky
» A $700 million agreement is signed between Iraq and Italy to finance these projects
Today at 4:50 am by Rocky
» Iraq recovers 90 billion dinars from social protection violators
Today at 4:49 am by Rocky
» Sudanese officially launches the two licensing rounds and sets the date for stopping gas burning
Today at 4:48 am by Rocky
» An economic vision for the standard of competition for exploratory plots in Iraq
Today at 4:47 am by Rocky
» The Iraqi Islamic Bank announces an increase in its capital to 300 billion dinars
Today at 4:46 am by Rocky
» A communication from the Ministry of Health to the Ministry of Interior in Kurdistan regarding “herb
Today at 4:44 am by Rocky
» Popular agreement to end the “cancer towers” crisis in the oldest villages of Diyala.. Document
Today at 4:42 am by Rocky
» What is the reason for OPEC's decision to stop publishing its estimates of the volume of global dema
Today at 4:41 am by Rocky
» It includes 29 projects in 12 governorates.. Launching the fifth supplementary licensing round and t
Today at 4:40 am by Rocky
» Among them are 8 Chinese companies...an economic view of the criteria for competition over explorato
Today at 4:38 am by Rocky
» Sudanese: Gas burning will stop within 3-5 years
Today at 4:38 am by Rocky
» With the extension of its legislative term.. Will the Iraqi parliament succeed in resolving the budg
Today at 4:36 am by Rocky
» Al-Sudani's angry message to Guterres: We do not need UNAMI.. Describe your belongings and leave
Today at 4:35 am by Rocky
» As a result of corruption charges... Parliamentary signatures were collected to dismiss the director
Today at 4:33 am by Rocky
» 13 countries are competing for 29 fields, and Anbar and Muthanna have the lion’s share... Details of
Today at 4:30 am by Rocky
» Ending the international coalition’s mission...negotiations may take more time
Today at 4:29 am by Rocky
» Oil reveals a mechanism to support services and establish infrastructure projects in the producing g
Today at 4:27 am by Rocky
» Al-Hakim: The future cannot be mortgaged to volatile oil prices
Today at 4:26 am by Rocky
» The New Generation Movement files a lawsuit to dissolve the regional government: It is unable to mak
Today at 4:24 am by Rocky
» Al-Sudani: The government program devoted a wide scope to the government’s vision for oil and gas in
Today at 4:23 am by Rocky
» Al-Rafidain: Loans for purchasing residential units start from 5 to 150 million
Today at 4:21 am by Rocky
» Iraq launches a new licensing round to develop oil and gas fields
Today at 4:20 am by Rocky
» Signing an agreement between Iraq and Italy to finance industrial projects worth $700 million
Today at 4:19 am by Rocky
» Minister of Oil: Soon we will announce the increase in Iraq’s oil reserves to 160 billion barrels
Today at 4:18 am by Rocky
» The Chinese company ZPEC wins the investment in the East Baghdad field - the northern extensions
Today at 4:17 am by Rocky
» utube 5/9/24 Iraqi Dinar | Ali Alaq Announced New Rate Finally Showing New Rate On Tv Screen | Din
Yesterday at 4:55 pm by Rocky
» A leader in the National Bank: We are committed to the federal decision and to postpone the election
Yesterday at 9:28 am by Rocky
» Al-Hakim: Iraq's future cannot be mortgaged to volatile oil prices
Yesterday at 9:24 am by Rocky
» The conflict of the corridors: the path to development from a historical perspective and the door to
Yesterday at 9:22 am by Rocky
» The Kurdistan Region demands that the federal government spend 1.1 billion dinars.. What is the reas
Yesterday at 9:21 am by Rocky
» Tomorrow, Iraq is preparing to launch a complementary round of gas licensing
Yesterday at 9:19 am by Rocky
» A government move to restore the funds of the Trade Bank of Iraq
Yesterday at 9:17 am by Rocky
» The Central Bank informs France of plans to restructure the banking sector
Yesterday at 9:15 am by Rocky
» A government advisor reveals the fate of the budget tables
Yesterday at 9:13 am by Rocky
» Iranian mediation between Baghdad and Erbil... Revealing the most prominent files of Raisi’s visit t
Yesterday at 9:10 am by Rocky
» Reconstruction and development is a priority.. A parliamentary committee follows up and monitors gov
Yesterday at 9:08 am by Rocky
» Al-Hakim comments on the agreements concluded with Türkiye and confirms: Iraq is on the right path
Yesterday at 9:06 am by Rocky
» Tomorrow... Iraq takes a step that will give it gas equivalent to 200% of imported Iranian gas
Yesterday at 9:04 am by Rocky
» A long and disturbing message.. The Iraqi government “blames” the United Nations because of “other p
Yesterday at 9:00 am by Rocky
» The Governor of the Central Bank and the French Ambassador discuss developments in the banking secto
Yesterday at 5:18 am by Rocky
» Al-Bajari: Iraqi companies will have a great opportunity to work after opening the door to investmen
Yesterday at 5:16 am by Rocky
» Transparency: Imports from Sulaymaniyah and Halabja during the past week amounted to more than 10 bi
Yesterday at 5:13 am by Rocky
» Al-Sudani: The delayed projects left great damage to the level of services in Babylon
Yesterday at 5:12 am by Rocky
» Economist: The fluctuation of the dollar is “the balance of speculators”
Yesterday at 5:10 am by Rocky
» {Al-Furat News} publishes the text of Al-Sudani’s request to Guterres to end UNAMI’s work in Iraq
Yesterday at 5:08 am by Rocky
» A former MP accuses Türkiye of transferring its conflict with the workers to Iraq
Yesterday at 5:05 am by Rocky
» A call to the Sudanese to remove American forces from Iraq
Yesterday at 5:03 am by Rocky
» Oil Parliament: Ankara holds Erbil responsible for the oil fines it owes
Yesterday at 5:02 am by Rocky
» The government is silent...the reality of removing American forces from Iraq
Yesterday at 5:01 am by Rocky
» The radiation protection law in the first session of the next legislative term
Yesterday at 5:00 am by Rocky
» A Spanish company raises controversy and a representative reveals a parliamentary movement against i
Yesterday at 4:59 am by Rocky
» Sudanese officially requests the end of the United Nations mission in Iraq / documents
Yesterday at 4:58 am by Rocky
» Because its sessions were not held, the Kirkuk Council faces a judicial complaint, and its members d
Yesterday at 4:56 am by Rocky
» Former US Chief of Staff: We slaughtered huge numbers of innocent people in Iraq and other countries
Yesterday at 4:55 am by Rocky
» The Association of Private Banks counts the percentage of shares traded on the stock market during a
Yesterday at 4:53 am by Rocky
» The European Union and Iraq agree to increase cooperation between them
Yesterday at 4:52 am by Rocky
» American Bank: Expectations to increase Iraq’s oil capacity in 2025
Yesterday at 4:50 am by Rocky
» Central Bank Governor to the French Ambassador: The plan to restructure government banks will change
Yesterday at 4:48 am by Rocky
» Integrity confirms working to conclude a memorandum of understanding with the Kuwaiti Anti-Corruptio
Yesterday at 4:47 am by Rocky
» Highlights of the Prime Minister's visit to Babylon
Yesterday at 4:46 am by Rocky
» The Minister of Transport discusses with a Turkish delegation the latest developments in the develop
Yesterday at 4:44 am by Rocky
» Free of charge.. Issuing approximately 13 thousand unified cards for those covered by social protect
Yesterday at 4:42 am by Rocky
» A parliamentary committee advises the government to deter trespassers: Slums are one of the reasons
Yesterday at 4:41 am by Rocky
» Embassy Protection confirms to “Baghdad Today”: The missions are safe and we have taken proactive me
Yesterday at 4:38 am by Rocky
» Water resources resolve the controversy of the “Wadi Al-Tea” project.. It will nourish the Hamrin ic
Yesterday at 4:37 am by Rocky
» After approving the National Security Strategy...a parliamentary movement to host “responsible” figu
Yesterday at 4:36 am by Rocky
» Al-Hakim calls for the distribution of plots of land to the families of the martyrs of the Popular M
Yesterday at 4:34 am by Rocky
» Order 160 Committee completes the “port scandals” papers... and searches for a legal outlet for impl
Yesterday at 4:33 am by Rocky
» It revealed the details of its contract with four companies to complete the census requirements... P
Yesterday at 4:31 am by Rocky
» Egypt, Morocco and Qatar praise the Iraqi Integrity proposal to establish the Arab Law Enforcement C
Yesterday at 4:30 am by Rocky
» The Iraqi Parliament enters its legislative recess and requires holding an “extraordinary” session o
Yesterday at 4:28 am by Rocky
» The Sudanese has not rested since the morning.. He carried out 12 activities and allocated a trillio
Yesterday at 4:27 am by Rocky
» Blinken's agent: Erbil is a strategic ally of Washington in a 360-degree relationship
Yesterday at 4:25 am by Rocky
» Oil seeks to convert refinery products to “Euro 5”... high quality and environmentally friendly
Yesterday at 4:24 am by Rocky