PMF ally defies weapons ban proposal
Shafaq News – Baghdad
The Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) and the “resistance” are part of the Iraqi state and must be excluded from calls to restrict weapons, Kataib Sayyid al-Shuhada, one of Iraq’s most prominent armed groups, stated on Saturday.
The group’s Spokesman Kazem al-Fartousi told Shafaq News that such calls should target only “arms held by outlaws,” stressing that the PMF and resistance factions “have never acted outside the law, and any individual misconduct does not represent their policy, which forbids using weapons against Iraqis.”
He said Iraq still faces threats, citing the presence of “occupation forces [US-led Global Coalition]” and instability in Syria as reasons to keep arms in the hands of the state, the resistance, and the PMF. “This slogan must remain, and there should be no impression that weapons exist outside legal frameworks,” he added.
On whether Iraq could face a Lebanon-style demand to disarm resistance groups, al-Fartousi said, “Such a request will not be made, we will not accept it, and there will be no disarmament as long as the occupation exists.”
His remarks came hours after Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani reaffirmed that restricting weapons to state control and enforcing the rule of law are principles endorsed by Iraq’s top religious authority and must be applied without targeting any group.
