Iraq may be forced into war – Minister

“Iraq’s foreign minister, Dr Fuad Hussein, told the media that the attacks by Iranian-backed militias and US forces could lead to conflict in Iraq. ”

“Right now, Iran and the United States are very tense with each other,” he said.

I want both groups to stop attacking each other. He said they won’t solve their problem in Iraq. “We spent a lot of money. ”

In the last week, the price involved US air strikes that killed 17 fighters from Iranian-supported armed groups. Later, a powerful missile hit a militia commander, Abu Bakir Al Saadi, and his jeep exploded in flames on a street where people live in Baghdad. The government here criticized the attack, calling it a clear assassination without concern for civilian lives or international law. They were shocked that this came from an ally.

The American attacks were because three US soldiers were killed in Jordan. The US military will keep doing what’s needed to keep its people safe.

As the two groups fight, Iraq is suffering.

The minister said they need to start talking again about bringing home 2,500 US troops who have been here as advisors since 2014 to stop the Islamic State from coming back. People are saying that they have been in charge for too long, both in the government and in the community.

Most Iraqis don’t want foreign soldiers in Iraq. We will talk with the Americans who have been invited and work things out. Those who were not invited should go, and we hope they will leave through talking things out.

The people who were not invited, especially by him, are strong groups from Iran who support them and have been attacking US soldiers here. Many people are part of Iraq’s security forces. Critics say they are working for Iran as soldiers.

The minister says that the militias are now being faced with challenges, which is different from before when speaking out would lead to threats. This is a new time in Iraq.

“He said that many political leaders are now starting to talk about this. ” “Many people were too afraid to talk about it. ” This is also a part of what really happens in this country. But now we are discussing it. People tell those guys, “stop it. ”

He said the militias know that if they keep fighting, they will start a war in our country that is not our fight. He also got the message in Tehran, he says.

The foreign minister said that Iran has some control here, but he denies that it is telling Baghdad what to do. Dr Renad Mansour, who works at Chatham House in London, says it’s like always trying to make deals.

“Do they need to listen to Tehran. Sometimes they do, and sometimes they don’t,” he says. “It could change. The Iranians say, “this is the least we will accept, and this is the most we will tolerate. ” They usually come together, but sometimes they move apart. “It’s not so clear-cut. ”

The influence of Iran is very strong here: in politics, in militias, and in the streets. Among the walls and trees, there are posters of Qasem Soleimani, a high-ranking Iranian leader who was killed in a US airstrike at Baghdad airport in January 2020. Here and there, in traffic congestion, you can see the face of Iran’s top leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Some of the tuk-tuk taxis driving loudly around Tahrir Square in the afternoon sun have pictures of Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah, who leads Hezbollah, a strong military group in Lebanon supported by Iran.

I asked the minister from another country if he was concerned about how much influence Iran has here. “I’m concerned about the impact of everything around us, not just from Iran. ” We want to remove all these influences. The choice about Iraq needs to be made in Baghdad by the people who live there.

Right now, the country is stuck between fighting with two of its friends: Iran and the US. Neither of them wants their conflict to get much worse, and it seems like they don’t, but it could still happen.

Iranian-supported armed groups in this area have promised to increase their attacks on US troops, following the death of the militia leader in Baghdad. “The Islamic Resistance of Iraq said that his killing broke all the rules of fighting. ” “We ask our fellow fighters to join us in resisting and removing the occupation. ”

The United Nations envoy for Iraq, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert, says the situation is still very unpredictable. “Iraq and the surrounding area are in a very tense and dangerous situation,” she says, “and even a small mistake could lead to a big conflict. “