Major Iraqi Shiite parties call for unity to expel US troops
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region- Major Iraqi Shiite parties on Friday called for parliamentary unity to expel US forces following airstrikes that killed high profile Iranian targets on Friday morning.
In the early hours of Friday, US airstrikes killed infamous Iranian general Qassem Soleiman and Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, deputy head of the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), known as Hashd al-Shaabi in Arabic, along with several PMF fighters.
The strikes have sparked wide fears over Iraq’s future and the potential for violence.
The killings are a “blatant violation of Iraqi sovereignty” and an escalation that could drag Iraq and the world into a war, Iraq’s caretaker Prime Minister Abdul-Mahdi said in a statement.
In response to the airstrikes, Abdul-Mahdi called on the Iraqi parliament to hold an exceptional session to discuss an official Iraqi response to the US action.
The US action violated the conditions of their deployment to Iraq under the international anti-Islamic State (ISIS) Coalition, Abdul-Mahdi added.
“The time has come to put an end to American arrogance and recklessness inside Iraq. Everyday, the fakeness of their claims and underestimation of Iraqi sovereignty become clearer,” first deputy Parliament Speaker Hassan al-Kaabi said in a Friday statement.
“Saturday’s session will be dedicated to making detailed decisions that will put an end to the American presence in Iraq,” al-Kaabi added.
The US has around 5,000 troops stationed across military bases of Iraq to advise, assist, and train Iraqi forces in the fight against the Islamic State (ISIS).
The presence of the forces has long been a contentious issue, and Iraqi Shiite parties, especially those close to Iran, have always wanted to put an end to the US presence.
“We call on all national forces to unite their ranks for the purpose of expelling foreign troops, whose presence has become a burden on Iraq, and whose continued presence mean more Iraqi blood being spilled,” Hadi al-Amiri, head of the pro-Iran Fatih coalition, one of the two largest rival Shiite blocs, said in a Friday statement.
Amiri denounced the killings as a “treacherous American aggression”.
A close ally of Iran, he urged the parliament to “gather and make its bold decision to expel foreign troops in Iraq because their presence does nothing but threaten Iraqis”.
The Islamic Dawa party, of which Abu al-Muhdanis was a member, has also condemned the US, blasting America's "lack of respect for Iraqi sovereignty."
"American forces are behaving as through Iraq is still under its despicable occupation" the party said, calling on the government to review relations with the US.
Friday’s airstrikes are the pinnacle of frayed US-Iran relations, which have been marred by violence over the past week. On Sunday, December 29, US airstrikes killed 25 fighters of Kataib Hezbollah, an Iran-backed Iraqi militia, and injured tens more.
The US’ retaliatory attacks were in response to the death of an American civil contractor in a rocket attack on K1 military base in Kirkuk on December 27. The militia are widely suspected to be responsible for the offensive.
On Tuesday, supporters of Kataib Hezbollah and other militia factions stormed the US Embassy in Baghdad and setting part of the compound ablaze in response to the US airstrikes.
The Sayiroon Alliance, the second-largest parliamentary bloc, run by Shiite Cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, has also called for a session to discuss Friday's "treacherous agression".
“We, while condemning this cowardly, treacherous aggression that constitutes a clear attack on Iraq’s and its people’s capabilities, call on all members of parliament to attend tomorrow, Saturday’s session to discuss this dangerous and flagrant assault,” Sayiroon said.
“We affirm the necessity for all national forces to come together to unite ranks, stand against American aggression, and work on ending its presence through legislating a law to evict all foreign forces from Iraqi soil,” the alliance added.
Kurdish and Sunni political parties are yet to make a stance on the contentious issue. The Kurdistan Region itself hosts some US soldiers who work closely with the Peshmerga in the fight against the Islamic State (ISIS).