Al-Ameri, al-Fayyadh attend funeral of PMF fighters killed in U.S. attack

Shafaq News/ The Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) on Sunday held a funeral procession for the fighters of US airstrikes in al-Anbar's al-Qaim and Akashat.

The funeral was attended by Health Minister Saleh al-Hasnawi, representing Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, as well as PMF chief Falih al-Fayyadh and Hadi al-Amiri, the head of the Binaa coalition and secretary-general of the Badr organization.

The procession began from the headquarters of the PMF's media directorate in the Palestine Street in central Baghdad.

The death toll from the US strikes on PMF positions in Anbar province rose to 17 on Sunday, after a security source reported to Shafaq News Agency that the commander of the 3rd Battalion of the PMF's Armored Fighting Directorate had passed away of his wounds.

PMF chief Falih al-Fayyadh said on Sunday that the US attack on the PMF's al-Anbar Operations headquarters "will not go unanswered."

The US military said it carried out the airstrikes in response to a rocket attack on a military base in Jordan that killed three troops.

The PMF is a state-sanctioned umbrella group of mostly Shiite paramilitary groups that played a key role in defeating the Islamic State group in Iraq.

The US has repeatedly accused the PMF of carrying out rocket attacks on US bases in Iraq. The PMF has denied these accusations.

The Iraqi government has summoned the US ambassador to Baghdad to protest the airstrikes.

The US has a large military presence in Iraq, which is tasked with training and advising Iraqi security forces and helping to combat the Islamic State group.