Friends, this law has prophetic significance because it will allow to Iran to gain more power in the Mesopotamia region thus another piece of the prophetic puzzle falls into place.
Pictured above, is the spokesman for the Popular Mobilization Units Ahmed al-Assadi.
A
law
approved by the Iraqi parliament is stirring anger inside the country and
across the Middle East. The measure, passed on Saturday, recognizes the Popular
Mobilization Units, an Iran-backed Shiite militia, and will let them fight
alongside the Iraqi military.
The move has the potential to worsen sectarian
rivalries: the PMUs were formed in June of 2014 to fight the Islamic State (ISIS) after the city of Mosul fell to the terrorist group, but they stand accused of
abuses against the country’s Sunni minority. All the Shiite blocs in the Iraqi
parliament voted for the bill, while lawmakers representing the Sunni minority
objected.
The units, which comprise more than 110,00 fighters, are alleged by international monitoring groups to have killed and
terrorized Sunni residents who live in ISIS-controlled territories as
retaliation for attacks waged by the jihadist group. The militias reportedly
demolished Sunni homes, stores and mosques and detained and kidnapped Sunni
residents, according to a report issued by Human
Rights Watch. A few months ago your watchman placed an Amnesty Int'l video on this blog about Shia soldiers imprisoning and mistreating Sunni men and boys. The Islamic State adheres to a radical interpretation of a strain
of Sunni Islam.
In October, the Iraqi military began its
campaign to retake Mosul, the country’s second largest city that’s been held
for two years by ISIS. The campaign, which is currently inside the eastern
portion of the city, raised concerns in Sunni-dominated countries in the region. They worry
that the participation of PMU Shiite forces in the liberation of a
Sunni-dominated city like Mosul could lead to further abuses.
In a letter to Iraqi Prime Minister Haider
al-Abadi on Thursday, Human Rights Watch called on the
Iraqi government to “make a commitment to prevent any armed forces implicated
in laws of war violations from participating in planned operations,” and to
prohibit the PMUs from participating.
Sunnis
in Iraq and across Sunni-dominated countries are also raising concerns that the
official presence of Shiite militias under the Iraqi government could boost
Iran’s influence in the country. “As it stands now, [PMU involvement] would
constitute something that looks like Iran’s Revolutionary Guard,” said Raad
al-Dahlaki, a Sunni member of parliament. Iraqis on social media said “Iran
continues to destroy Iraq” and claim the
PMU “is now the Iranian army in Iraq.”
Meanwhile, users affiliated with the PMUs
uploaded posts showing members of the militias dancing and celebrating the new law. The PMU
itself tried to calm fears, tweeting on its officialaccount that “the PMU law is for all
Iraqis, Shiite, Sunnis, Turkeman, Shabak, Christians who fought under its
banner.”
Iran loses nuclear device
The
Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is concerned over a missing radioactive device
from Iran’s Bushehr nuclear reactor, Saudi-owned Arab newspaper Asharq al-Awsat reported
on Thursday.
Aside
from the security concerns, at the forefront in the GCC’s mind is what impact
the radioactive device—wherever it may be today—could have on water supplies.
According
to the newspaper, the device went missing after the car transporting it was
stolen. Thankfully, the vehicle was recovered, but the radioactive nuclear
device was not so lucky.
The
GCC has contacted the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) over the
incident—both organizations are concerned that Iran’s nuclear program may
pollute the waters in the Gulf, Asharq al-Awsat quoted GCC Emergency Management
Center chairman, Adnan al-Tamimi, as saying.
Most
members of the GCC – which includes Saudi Arabia, Kuwait,
the UAE, Qatar, Bahrain, and Oman – desalinate sea water from the Gulf. If
contamination from the device were to reach desalination stations, an already
critical situation becomes even more critical.
The
missing device is set to lose half of its power after 74 days of inactivity,
Tamimi said, noting that it still should be handled with care even after that
period.
Speaking
to Asharq al-Awsat, the Arab official criticized Iran’s low security and safety
levels at the Bushehr reactor, adding that the lack of Iranian transparency
about its nuclear program adds further concerns and anxiousness for the Arab
Gulf states.
Iran’s nuclear program has recently entered the spotlight again after Donald
Trump won the U.S. presidential election. In March of this year, Trump said in a
speech addressing the American Israel Public Affairs Committee: “My number-one priority is to dismantle the
disastrous deal with Iran.”
If
Trump were willing and able to deliver on that promise by tearing up the deal,
Iran would once again impact the oil market, dragging down Iran’s oil exports
from the near-pre-sanctions levels it has almost reached in recent months.
Last week, the U.S. House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly
in favor of extending the Iran Sanctions Act (ISA) from 1996 through December 31, 2026. The act—adopted long before the most
recent international sanctions against Tehran—was aimed at punishing
investments in the Iranian energy industry and deterring the country from
pursuing the development of nuclear weapons.
Last
week’s bill to extend the ISA after its expiry next month still needs Senate
approval and President Obama’s signature to become law.
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