Paramilitary fighters foil Islamic State infiltration attempt into Iraq
A Shi’ite volunteer wearing a mask, who has joined the Iraqi army to fight against the predominantly Sunni militants from the radical Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), looks on during a parade on a street in Kanaan, Diyala province, June 26, 2014.
Anbar (IraqiNews.com) – Pro-government fighters of al-Hashd al-Shaabi foiled on Saturday a plot by Islamic State to infiltrate into Anbar province coming from Syria to carry out terrorist attacks.
“Acting upon accurate intelligence reports, an artillery shelling was launched targeting a gathering of Islamic State in Syria, killing several terrorists,” Alghad Press website quoted al-Hashd al-Shaabi, aka Popular Mobilization Forces, as saying in a statement.
“The terrorists were planning to sneak into Iraq and attack security forces stationed west of Anbar,” the statement added.
Popular Mobilization Forces, an alliance of volunteer Shia paramilitary forces, have actively backed the Iraqi government’s military campaign against IS since 2014, when they were formed upon a top Shia clergy edict to counter the Sunni Jihadist group.
PMF won official recognition as a national force late 2016, becoming under the command of the prime minister, who is also the supreme commander of the armed forces.