Iraqi Commander Stresses Hashed Al-Shaabi’s Role in Liberation of Mosul
TEHRAN (Tasnim) - Commander of Iraq’s Badr Brigade emphasized that the popular forces, known as Hashed al-Shaabi, will definitely take part in a long-awaited military operation to recapture the city of Mosul from terrorist groups, in spite of voices of dissent by certain parties.
The role of the Hashed al-Shaabi fighters will not be confined to a specific geographical zone, Ameri stressed.
He underlined that the opposing voices will not prevent the popular forces from taking part in the operation to recapture Mosul, adding that the strategic northern city will not be liberated without cooperation among the Hashed al-Shaabi fighters, the Iraqi armed forces and brave tribal groups.
His comments came against the backdrop of remarks made mainly by the foreign sides aimed at undermining the role of Hashed al-Shaabi in Iraq.
Earlier in January, Saudi Arabia's ambassador to Baghdad Thamer al-Sabhan said in interview with Al-Sumaria television that the Hashed al-Shaabi forces are not wanted in Sunni Arab and Kurdish areas as “they are not accepted by the sons of Iraqi society.”
The Iraqi Foreign Ministry summoned the envoy afterwards to protest his interference in the country’s internal affairs.
Iraq turned to popular forces or Hashed al-Shaabi in 2014 to help counter a Daesh (ISIL) onslaught that overran large areas north and west of Baghdad, and they have played a key role in the fight against the terrorists.
The Daesh militants made advances in much of northern and western Iraq in summer 2014, after capturing swaths of northern Syria.
However, a combination of concentrated attacks by the Iraqi military and the popular forces, who rushed to take arms after top Iraqi cleric Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani issued a fatwa calling for fight against the militants, have blunted the edge of the Daesh offensive.