Private militias in Iraq

The term militia in contemporary Iraq refers to armed groups that fight on behalf of or as part of the Iraqi government, the Mahdi Army and Badr Organization being two of the biggest. Many predate the overthrow of Saddam Hussein, but some have emerged since, such as the Facilities Protection Service. The 2003 invasion of Iraq by United States-led forces undermined the internal order in the country and brought about, among other things, the establishment of several pro-Iranian militias affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps's Quds Force. The militias were set up with the purpose of driving the U.S. and Coalition forces out of Iraq and establishing Iranian involvement in the country. Prominent among the militias are Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq, Kata'ib Hezbollah and Harakat al-Nujaba.^[1]

Since the 2014 collapse of the Iraqi army in the North of Iraq against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, and the fatwa by the Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani calling for jihad or Hashd al-Shaabi ("Popular Mobilization")^[2] against ISIL, militias have become even more prominent in Iraq.^[3]

however since 2017, many of these militias have disbanded and some have joined the Iraqi government or army^[4]

^ "The Pro-Iranian militias in Iraq – the current situation". The Meir Amit Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center. 2022-11-15.
^ According to another source "Hashed al-Sha'abi" is the name for "the coalition of militias which are now doing most of the fighting against Isil outside Kurdish areas" (source: "The Americans Cannot Save Ramadi, Says Leader of Iraq's Most Powerful Shia Militia". Daily Telegraph. 1 June 2015. Archived from the original on July 13, 2015. Retrieved 8 July 2015.)
^ Pelham, Nicolas (June 4, 2015). "ISIS & the Shia Revival in Iraq". New York Review of Books.
^ Pelham, Nicolas (June 12, 2017). "ISIS & the Shia Revival in Iraq and syria". New York Review of Books.