Iraqi state-sponsored umbrella organization
Military unit
The Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF ) (Arabic : قوات الحشد الشعبي , romanized : Quwwāt al-Ḥashd ash-Shaʿbī ),[ 36] 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 ),[ 37] but also include Sunni Muslim , Christian , and Yazidi groups.[ 38] [ 39] [ 40] [ 41] The Popular Mobilization Units were formed in 2014 and fought in nearly every major Iraqi battle against Islamic State .[ 42] 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.[ 38] [ 43] 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".[ 44]
Some of its component militias which are pro-Iran are considered terrorist groups by some states and have been accused of promoting sectarian violence.[ 45] [ 46] [ 47] 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.[ 48] During the 2019–2021 Iraqi protests , the pro-Iran groups were responsible for killing and wounding large numbers of protesters and activists.[ 49] [ 50] [ 51] [ 52] [ 53] Pro-Iran PMF groups have also fought against pro-Sistani and Sadrist PMF groups, and their increasing rivalry erupted into violent clashes in 2022.[ 54] [ 55] 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 ".[ 56] [ 57] [ 58] [ 59] [ 60] [ 61] [ 62]
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