Iraq lawmakers demand removal of party militants

Members of the Iraqi parliament from the Salah Al-Din governorate on Sunday demanded the removal of all forces associated with political parties and armed groups from the province.

This comes hours after the Iraqi Center for Documentation of War Crimes accused fighters affiliated with the Asa’ib Ahl Al-Haq faction of killing 12 civilians in the Balad district of the Salah Al-Din governorate.

The governorate’s deputies announced in a joint statement: “It has become imperative to remove all armed parties associated with political or armed groups that try to attach themselves to the [Popular Mobilisation Forces] crowd and use it as a cover to commit crimes against the innocent.”

“It has become imperative to remove them from our governorate and to keep the final word on security matters for our armed forces and internal security forces exclusively,” it added.

Many of the Popular Mobilisation Forces factions, including the Peace Brigades affiliated with the Sadrist movement leader Muqtada Al-Sadr, Asa’ib Ahl Al-Haq led by Qais Khazali and other factions, manage the security file for some areas of the Salah Al-Din governorate.

The Asa’ib Ahl Al-Haq faction, which is part of the Popular Mobilisation Forces, has denied responsibility for the incident.

READ: 79 Iraqi patients arrive in Turkey for treatment