Group warns of growing number of Iranian forces in Iraq

PARIS, France—The Iranian opposition group Mojahedin-e-Khalgh (MEK) warned of the growing number of Iran’s Qods forces in Iraq, saying that Tehran uses the fight against the Islamic State (ISIS) to assert itself in Iraq.

In a statement published on Friday, the Paris-based group said that Iran’s Qods forces and Shiite militia groups “are forcefully expelling Iraqi citizens, especially Sunnis from their homes, seize their properties and massacre them in the name of fighting ISIS.”

The MEK said that the actions of the Iran-backed groups “would lead to fueling the fire of terrorism in the whole region.”

Hussein Abidini, member of MEK’s foreign affairs committee told alarabiyan.net that the number of Qods force fighters in Iraq has exceeded 7,000.

According to the opposition group, members of the Qods force are stationed in Iraq’s Salahaddin, Diyala, Baghdad provinces as well as in Karbala, Najaf, Khanaqin and Saadiya.

Iranian leaders have confirmed in the past that they helped the Iraqi army and militia groups with military advise in their fight against ISIS, particularly in Shiite-majority areas.

Alarabiya quoted Abidni as saying that Iran fears losing its influence in Iraq after the rise of the country’s Sunni tribes against Baghdad in the summer of 2013.

Pictures of Qasim Soleimani, the powerful leader of the Qods forces have appeared in the media fighting alongside Shiite militiamen in Diyala province.

Iranian leaders have also suggested that forming paramilitary groups would save Iraq from the threat of ISIS and other radical Sunni groups.

In a speech in October, Iranian general and former commander in chief Yahya Rahim Safavi said, “If Nouri al-Maliki had learned from the Islamic Revolution and created forces like the Basij, ISIS would never have been able to make such an advance in Iraq,” he said.

“Now they (Iraqis) have come to this conclusion and created such groups,” he added.