Iran is strengthening its influence in Iraq by allowing leaders of its proxy terrorist organization Hamas and the Yemeni Houthi rebel group to relocate there. The New York Times The news was reported on Sunday, just days after Iranian President Massoud Pezechkian concluded a visit to the neighboring country.
Pezeshkian was elected in a special election following the death of his predecessor, Ebrahim Raisi, in a mysterious helicopter crash in May. Made Pezeshkian visited Iraq on his first international trip of his tenure. He left Iraq on Friday after visiting Baghdad, meeting with Kurdish leaders in Erbil and concluding with a stop in Basra. During his meetings, he reportedly emphasized unity and cooperation between Islamist political groups and signed 14 memoranda of understanding with the Iraqi government in Baghdad.
The Iraqi government has not publicly boasted about helping its proxies expand their influence in Baghdad. The New York Times The spokesman only confirmed Hamas and the Houthis' official presence in the Iraqi capital through unnamed officials, noting that both terrorist groups maintain low profiles within the country. As a Shiite terrorist organization, the Houthis have reportedly received a particularly “warm” welcome from the Shiite terrorist coalition known as the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), which became an official component of the Iraqi army during the war against the Sunni Islamic State “caliphate.”
“Iraqi government officials have warned that Iran-backed militias [Hamas and the Houthis] “We will establish a permanent base in Baghdad early this summer.” Times Reported“Iraqi authorities have publicly denied this,” it said.
The decline of American influence under current President Joe Biden appears to have played a role in allowing terrorists to infiltrate. Times The sources said Baghdad does not want Iranian proxies to take root there.
“Two people who spoke to The New York Times said some Iraqi government officials personally did not welcome the new guests but had no authority to block them, given the influence of Iraqi parties with ties to Iran,” the left-leaning newspaper claimed.
The PMF is reportedly heavily involved in ensuring Hamas and the Houthis operate successfully in the country. TimesKataib Hezbollah, one of the most prominent Shiite terrorist organisations within the PMF, helps Hamas maintain security, while Asaib Ahl al-Haq, a PMF terrorist wing, supports the Houthis.
While the Iraqi government has officially avoided discussing the foreign terrorist group's invasion out loud, Iraq's radical Islamist lawmakers have welcomed it. Times He noted that the Houthis had received a “particularly warm” welcome in Iraq.
“The visit of the Houthi representatives to Iraq is welcomed by all Iraqi political parties,” Shiite lawmaker Saad al-Saadi was quoted as saying.
moreover Times' reports Israel Hayom news agency Reported On Sunday, it was reported that Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), a U.S.-designated terrorist organization and formally affiliated with the Iranian government, presided over a monitoring “operational committee” in Iraq in March to help coordinate between terrorist proxies. The committee reportedly included several PMF groups and the Houthis.
“Then in May, Houthi leader Abdulmalik al-Houthi announced the start of coordinating military operations between his militia, Ansar Allah, and pro-Iranian Shiite militias in Iraq,” Israel Hayom added.
The IRGC has had close ties with the PMF in Iraq for many years. The terrorist organization has long used the IRGC's specialized foreign terrorism unit, the Quds Force, to coordinate with PMF jihadists, especially in anti-American operations. The pioneer of such coordination was former Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani, whom former President Donald Trump killed in an airstrike in Baghdad in January 2020. Notably, Soleimani was killed along with Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, founder of Kataib Hezbollah, with whom he had met to coordinate tactics in Iraq.
Iraqi officials have frequently complained that they want the complete elimination of U.S. military presence in the country as soon as possible, following reports of a growing presence of Iranian proxy terrorist groups.Operation Inherent Resolve“Islamic State” is an effort to eradicate the Islamic “caliphate.”
Thursday, The Washington Post Reported Baghdad is working on a deal with the Pentagon to withdraw U.S. troops from most of Iraq by 2025, with a small number remaining in autonomous areas of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) until 2026. Iraqi authorities are reportedly moving to withdraw U.S. troops in response to pressure from PMF forces and the Iranian government to minimize U.S. military influence in the region, both in Baghdad and the KRG capital, Erbil.
KRG President Nechirvan Barzani visited Tehran in May, shortly before Raisi's death, and reportedly received a stern rebuke for severing ties with Washington.
“Complete disarmament and the absence of counter-revolutionary elements on Iraqi territory is essential,” Iran's state-run Press TV quoted Raisi as telling Barzani at the time. “We are confident in the goodwill and friendship of our Iraqi and Kurdish brothers.”
