After a gunfight between members of the Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF), a state-sponsored paramilitary umbrella that includes groups loyal to Iran, and at least one police officer was killed and 14 fighters were taken into custody in Iraq’s capital.
When PMF fighters stormed a Ministry of Agriculture building on Sunday to appoint a new director, the Interior Ministry reported.
An official meeting was halted by the gunmen, which caused panic among the police emergency response team. Security personnel also suffered injuries as a result of police “came under fire” at the scene.
The ministry reaffirmed that it would not tolerate any attempt to impose its will through force or threaten state institutions.
The group says it is “not interested in escalation.”
The PMF, formally integrated into Iraq’s armed forces, is primarily made up of Shia paramilitaries who were originally formed to combat ISIL (ISIS). Tehran is still in close contact with many of its factions.
According to security sources and insiders, the fighters were attempting to replace the former director. In the incident, police and hospital personnel confirmed that one officer was killed and nine others were hurt.
The detained gunmen were referred to the judiciary, according to a statement from Iraq’s Joint Operations Command, which is in charge of Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani. The most powerful militia in Iraq, Kataib Hezbollah, one of the most powerful units affiliated with PMF brigades 45 and 46, were those who were involved.
A member of Kataib Hezbollah claimed the death of a member and the wounding of six others by an unnamed member of the organization. The group “does not want to escalate” and “will allow the judiciary to proceed,” the group member said.
Al-Sudani mandated an investigation committee to examine the events in response to the escalation.
Concerned about the fragility of Iraq’s security apparatus and the blurred distinction between formal authority and powerful militia are the PMF’s continued influence in Iraqi politics and its armed confrontations with state institutions.
Attempt to gain control
A conflict between Iran and the US has developed over the years following the US’s invasion of Iraq in 2003. A number of members of the PMF, which formed in 2014 to fight ISIL, are among those who are working in concert with Iran.
Source: Aljazeera
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