Iraq slams US attack on PMF headquarters as violation of sovereignty

The US attack which killed a senior PMF commander has revived the demands of complete withdrawal of all foreign troops from Iraq. Around 2,500 foreign troops continue to remain in the region despite opposition from the people

January 05, 2024 by Peoples Dispatch
Abou Taqwa (pictured), a top commander of the PMF, was among those killed when a US drone hit PMF’s headquarters in eastern Baghdad.

On Thursday, January 4, the Iraqi government called the US attack on the headquarters of semi-official armed group Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) or Hashd al-Shaabi “a dangerous escalation and aggression against the country’s sovereignty.” 

At least four people were killed, including a top commander of the PMF, and six others were injured when a US drone hit PMF’s headquarters in eastern Baghdad. The PMF commander killed in the US attack was identified as Hajj Moshtaq Taleb al-Saidi (Abou Taqwa).

Reacting to the US attacks, Iraqi president Abdul Latif Jamal Rashid issued a statement on Thursday condemning it and calling it a violation of Iraq’s sovereignty.

Iraqi prime minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani too issued a statement holding the international coalition forces responsible for the attack and calling it a “dangerous escalation and aggression.” 

“In a blatant aggression and violation of Iraq’s sovereignty and security, a drone conducted an act akin to terrorist activities” said Major General Yahya Rasoul, the spokesman of the Commander-in-Chief of the Iraqi Armed Forces, in a statement on Thursday. 

He reiterated that, “the Iraqi armed forces hold the Global Coalition Forces responsible for this unwarranted attack” calling the PMF “an Iraqi security entity that is operating within the powers authorized by the Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces.”

Rasoul claimed that the US drone attack violates the agreement between Iraqi forces and International Coalition Forces. 

The PMF reiterated its demand for the withdrawal of all foreign troops from the country saying that the Iraqi government must fulfill its duties towards the people of the country. 

The International Coalition Force, led by the US and NATO, was originally deployed following the US invasion in 2003. Most of the forces were withdrawn in 2009. However, they were deployed back in 2014 as a part of the war against the Islamic State (ISIS).

Following large-scale popular opposition after the assassination of Islamic Revolutionary Guard’s Corp (IRGC) commander Qaseem Soleimani and PMF commander Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis in 2020 by the US in Baghdad, the Iraqi parliament passed a resolution demanding the complete withdrawal of all foreign troops from the country. 

However, subsequent Iraqi governments have so far failed to implement that resolution. Meanwhile, the US and some other countries withdrew most of their forces from the country but still nearly 2,500 foreign troops remain in Iraq. 

In December 2021 Iraq had announced the end of their combat mission in the country and had claimed that remaining foreign troops were part of an “assistance and training” mission.

Thousands of people participated in the funeral procession of Abou Taqwa held in Baghdad on Thursday with Iraqi and PMF flags.

Following the attacks on Thursday, al-Sudani announced on Friday that, “the government is in the process of setting a date to make arrangements to permanently end the presence of” all foreign troops in the country.  

PMF a part of the Axis of Resistance

PMF is widely considered as part of the regional axis of resistance against the colonial and imperial interventions, along with Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen. All three of these groups have extended their support to Palestinian independence against Israeli occupation.

The US attack on the PMF headquarters comes amid the increased targeting of its bases around the country and in Syria by PMF militias. They have attacked several US bases in the region in the last few months in solidarity with the Palestinians in Gaza.

Gaza has been under constant attack by the Israelis since October 7. Over 22,000 Palestinians have been killed and nearly 60,000 injured. 

The Iraqi militias have underlined that the US has been complicit in the Israeli genocide of Palestinians by providing it with military and diplomatic support.

The US has provided billions of dollars worth of military equipment to Israel since the beginning of the current war, including ammunition which has been used to bomb Gaza by Israelis. It has also prevented the international community’s efforts to demand an immediate ceasefire by repeatedly using its veto against resolutions in the UN Security Council. 

According to the US Department of Defense, its bases across the region have been targeted more than 100 times since the Israeli war in Gaza began on October 7 by the Iraqi militias. There were attacks on the US bases on Thursday as well, PMF claimed.

In its statement on Thursday, PMF vowed to continue to attack US bases all across the region until the Israeli war in Gaza ends and all foreign troops leave the country.