Reuters: Iran-Backed Militias in Iraq Ready to Disarm

AP

Members of the Iran-backed Asaib Ahl al-Haq paramilitary group in Baghdad.

Ten top commanders and Iraqi officials told Reuters that several of powerful militia groups in Iraq that are supported by Iran are ready to disarm for the first time in order to prevent a conflict with the United States' (U.S.) Trump administration from escalating.

The individuals, who include six local commanders of four main militias, say the initiative to ease tensions comes after U.S. officials have quietly warned the Iraqi government several times since Trump took office in January.

The officials told Baghdad that unless it acted to disband the militias operating on its soil, America could target the groups with airstrikes, the individuals added.

Izzat al-Shahbndar, a senior Shi'ite Muslim politician close to Iraq's governing alliance, told Reuters that discussions between Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani and several militia leaders were "very advanced", and the groups were inclined to comply with U.S. calls for disarmament.

"The factions are not acting stubbornly or insisting on continuing in their current form," he said, adding that the groups were "fully aware" they could be targeted by the U.S.

Reuters reported that the six militia commanders from the Kataib Hezbollah, Nujabaa, Kataib Sayyed al-Shuhada, and Ansarullah al-Awfiyaa groups were questioned in Baghdad and a southern province. They asked to remain anonymous to address the delicate subject.

"Trump is ready to take the war with us to worse levels, we know that, and we want to avoid such a bad scenario," said a commander of Kataib Hezbollah, the most powerful Shi'ite militia, who spoke from behind a black face mask and sunglasses.

The commanders said their main ally and patron, Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) military force, had given them its blessing to take whatever decisions they deemed necessary to avoid being drawn into a potentially ruinous conflict with the United States and Israel.

The militias are part of the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, an umbrella group of about 10 hardline Shi'ite armed factions that collectively command about 50,000 fighters and arsenals that include long-range missiles and anti-aircraft weapons, according to two security officials who monitor militias' activities.

Farhad Alaaeldin, Sudani's foreign affair adviser, told Reuters in response to queries about disarmament talks that the prime minister was committed to ensuring all weapons in Iraq were under state control through "constructive dialogue with various national actors".

The two Iraqi security officials said Sudani was pressing for disarmament from all the militias of the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, which declare their allegiance to Iran's IRGC or Quds Force rather than to Baghdad.

Some groups have already largely evacuated their headquarters and reduced their presences in major cities including Mosul and Anbar since mid-January for fear of being hit by air attacks, according to officials and commanders.

Many commanders have also stepped up their security measures in that time, changing their mobile phones, vehicles and abodes more frequently, they said.

Shahbndar, the Shi'ite politician, said the Iraqi government had not yet finalised a deal with militant leaders, with a disarmament mechanism still under discussion. Options being considered include turning the groups into political parties and integrating them into the Iraqi armed forces, he added.



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