Iraqi state-sponsored umbrella organization
Military unit
The Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF ) (Arabic : قوات الحشد الشعبي , romanized : Quwwāt al-Ḥashd ash-Shaʿbī ),[41] also known as the Popular Mobilization Units (PMU ), is an Iraqi state-sponsored paramilitary network composed of about 67 armed factions that are mostly Shia Muslim groups (some of which are backed by Iran ),[42] but also include Sunni Muslim , Christian , and Yazidi groups.[43] [44] [45] [46] The Popular Mobilization Units were formed in 2014 and fought in nearly every major Iraqi battle against Islamic State .[47] Many of its main militias that belong to the Shia faction, trace their origins to the "Special Groups ", Iranian-sponsored Shi'ite groups which previously fought an insurgency against the United States and the Coalition forces , as well as a sectarian conflict against Sunni Jihadist and Ba'athist insurgents.[43] [48] It has been called the new Iraqi Republican Guard after it was fully reorganized in early 2018 by its then-Commander Haider al-Abadi , Prime Minister of Iraq from 2014 to 2018, who issued "regulations to adapt the situation of the Popular Mobilization fighters".[49]
Some of its component militias which are pro-Iran are considered terrorist groups by some states and have been accused of promoting sectarian violence.[50] [51] [52] Pro-Iran organizations in the PMF include the Badr Organisation , Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq , Kata'ib Hezbollah , Kata’ib al-Imam Ali , Saraya Khorasani , etc.[53] During the 2019–2021 Iraqi protests , the pro-Iran groups were responsible for killing and wounding large numbers of protesters and activists.[54] [55] [56] [57] [58] Pro-Iran PMF groups have also fought against pro-Sistani and Sadrist PMF groups, and their increasing rivalry erupted into violent clashes in 2022.[59] [60] Since 2020, Iranian-backed PMF groups have launched attacks against American and allied forces in the region, claiming them under the name "Islamic Resistance in Iraq ".[61] [62] [63] [64] [65] [66] [67]
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