Eleven people were killed in raids on bases of the Iraqi Popular Mobilization Forces near the border with Syria and near Baghdad. The United States is suspected of the attacks.
11 people were killed on Thursday near the Iraqi-Syrian border and the capital, Baghdad, in airstrikes on the positions of former Shiite paramilitary groups linked to Iran, but now integrated into the Iraqi army. The United States is suspected of the attacks. TASR writes about it according to AFP.
The attacks near the border were aimed at the base of the People’s Mobilization Forces (PMF). The base was destroyed, killing nine fighters and wounding another ten. Two other militants were killed in an attack on a facility on the outskirts of Baghdad, which is jointly used by the police and the PMF.
PMF and response to attacks
Since the start of the war against Iran, pro-Iranian groups have been repeatedly accused of launching missile and drone attacks on US bases in Iraq and Syria. The US responds to them with air strikes or drone strikes.
The PMF blamed the US for Thursday’s attacks, saying the sites hit “had no role in attacks on US bases in Iraq or elsewhere” and that “all fighters killed were performing their duties”. The group is, in its own words, “an integral part of the Iraqi security apparatus.”
Origin and background of PMF
The PMF is a coalition of predominantly Shiite armed groups in Iraq, many of which have close ties to Iran. It was created in 2014 when Iraq tried to stop the progress of the terrorist organization Islamic State (IS). The Iraqi parliament formally incorporated them into the state security forces in 2016, but many factions have retained their own command and political ties. Some of the most influential groups – such as Kataib Hezbollah, Asaib Ahl al-Hakk (AAH) or the Badr organization – have close ties to the Iranian Revolutionary Guards. Iran has long supported them financially, with training and weapons.
Iraqi Prime Minister Muhammad Shija Sudani has already condemned the attacks. “This systematic and repeated aggression and reckless attacks represent a desperate attempt to create confusion and weaken Iraq’s security,” he said.
