Media: Iraqi Shiite militia reaches agreement with PM to halt military actions against Israel

A senior representative of the Iraqi Shiite al-Nujaba militia has stated that an agreement was reached between the militia and Iraqi Prime Minister Muhammad Shiya al-Sudani to halt military actions against Israel as part of supporting the Gaza Strip.

The militia members also agreed not to interfere in political developments in Syria, Caliber.Az reports via foreign media.

The militia representative mentioned that the groups decided to refrain from intervening in Syrian affairs and to monitor the situation from a distance, while also waiting for the inauguration of US President-elect Donald Trump to understand his Middle East policy, especially regarding Iran.

The source also noted that Iran has granted them the freedom to make decisions regarding the situation in Syria and Hayat Tahrir al-Sham in Syria. The agreement was reached amid regional and international calls for the dissolution of the Iraqi Popular Mobilization Forces (al-Hashd al-Shaabi) and the transfer of their weapons to the state. However, al-Sudani stated that he has no intention of disbanding al-Hashd al-Shaabi. 

A new militia umbrella group, al-Hashd al-Shaabi (Popular Mobilisation Forces or PMF), was created, comprising between 50 and 70 separate militias owing their allegiances to at least three different organisations. A number of failed attempts have since been made to institutionalise the PMF as an arm of the Iraqi state.

By Naila Huseynova