Militia hit by U.S. airstrikes in Iraq claims no connection to attacks on American troops
Simona Foltyn:
The group that is believed responsible for the bulk of attacks on American forces is Kataib Hezbollah. I visited their bases not far from Akashat back in 2021.
Kataib Hezbollah is the most powerful of the self-dubbed resistance, but part of it has been incorporated into the larger PMF, and it tries to use this official government-bestowed status to shield itself from American retaliation.
The United States has designated Kataib Hezbollah and other members of their resistance as terror organizations.
The Pentagon said that American fighter jets hit — quote — "terrorist groups supported by Iran's Revolutionary Guards" — unquote — and not the Popular Mobilization Forces, or PMF, which is part of the Iraqi state. But the targeting of the PMF's Brigade 13 here in Akashat raises questions about those claims and the accuracy of the intelligence.
The other possibility, some Iraqi officials worry, is that the United States has broadened its definition of what it regards as a legitimate target to all of the PMF. Under heavy guard, the commander arrives to inspect the aftermath of the strikes. His men warily eye an American surveillance drone hovering above.
Qasem Musleh heads Brigade 13 and the PMF in this area. He tells me that these installations have never been used to launch attacks on American forces.
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