Samstag, 20.11.2021 / 17:15 Uhr

Irakische Miliz gibt Auflösung bekannt

Von
Thomas von der Osten-Sacken

Erstaunliches tut sich im Irak:

The hardline pro-Iran militia Kataib Hezbollah announced on Friday the dissolution of one of its armed groups, following a call from Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr for militias to disband and leave all weapons in control of the state. 

Abu Ali al-Askari, a senior Kataib Hezbollah official, said on Telegram that “in response to what was published by one of the friendly parties regarding the initiative to disband its military forces,” his militia group has decided to dissolve its Saraya al-Difa al-Shaabi (Popular Defense Brigades), ordering it to “stop all its activities and close its headquarters.” (...)

Sadr, whose movement won the most seats in last month’s parliamentary election and is set to lead the next government, on Thursday called on the militias to disband if they want to join his cabinet. Political parties affiliated with the pro-Iran militias did poorly in the election and their supporters have rejected the results and staged protests. Askari responded to Sadr saying that Kataib Hezbollah would give up their weapons only after Sadr’s armed group, Saraya al-Salam, and the Kurdish Peshmerga did so.

On Friday, Sadr announced he was shutting down one of his brigades. “As a goodwill gesture from me, I announce the dissolution of the al-Yum al-Wuud [the Promised Day] Brigade, and the closure of their headquarters,” he tweeted. He said the group had previously handed over its weapons and that anyone in the brigade who still has a weapon must turn it in within 48 hours.