Popular Mobilization Forces
Iraqi state-sponsored umbrella organization / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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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 backed by Iran, but also include Sunni Muslim, Christian, and Yazidi groups.[42][43][44][45] The Popular Mobilization Units were formed in 2014 and fought in nearly every major Iraqi battle against Islamic State.[46] Many of its main militias, in particular the Shias, 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.[42][47] 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".[48]
Some of its component militias which are pro-Iran are considered terrorist groups by some states and have been accused of promoting sectarian violence.[49][50][51] 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.[52] During the 2019–2021 Iraqi protests, the pro-Iran groups were responsible for killing and wounding large numbers of protesters and activists.[53][54][55][56][57] Pro-Iran PMF groups have also fought against pro-Sistani and Sadrist PMF groups, and their increasing rivalry erupted into violent clashes in 2022.[58][59] 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".[60][61][62]