Iran-Backed Militia in Iraq: ‘Enemy’ U.S. Troops Now ‘a Target for Our Forces’

A component of the Baghdad-sanctioned coalition of mainly Iran-allied Shiite militias in Iraq has threatened to attack U.S. troops if they refuse to leave the country, declaring that the United States “has become our direct enemy.”

The threat came from Abdullatif al-Amidi, the commander of the Saraya al-Ashura faction inside the umbrella organization of mostly Shiite militias loyal to Iran known as al-Hashd al-Shaabi, Arabic for Popular Mobilization Forces/Units (PMF/PMU), reportsKurdistan24.

PMF factions, including at least one with American blood on its hands—the Asaib Ahl al-Haq (League of the Righteous)—have repeatedly vowed to target U.S. troops since they returned to Iraq to combat the Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL) in 2014.

Although the U.S. military has fought alongside the PMF, praising them for their contribution to the fight against the Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL), U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson recently urged the Shiite militiamen to “go home.”

Moreover, Congress has proposed bipartisan legislation to impose terrorist sanctions on at least two PMF components, Asaib Ahl Al-Haq (AAH) and Harakat Hezbollah al Nujaba, prompting some of their fellow militiamen to threaten American troops in Iraq again. READ MORE