PMF vows to defend Iraq after US airstrikes kill 16 members

Shafaq News/ The Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) announced that 16 of its members were killed, and 36 were wounded during the US air strikes that targeted eight locations in Al-Anbar Governorate, western Iraq, near the Iraqi-Syrian border.

In a statement, PMF said, “The attack threatened Iraqi security forces and instilled fear into civilians, damaging their properties as it is a clear violation of all international laws and norms.”

PMF confirmed their “readiness to uphold the orders of Mohammed Shia Al-Sudani, the Prime Minister and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, to preserve Iraq's sovereignty, unity, and the well-being of its people.”

The PMF further indicated that the search for their missing members continues.

The Iraqi government condemned the recent US attacks on its territory, refuting the American allegations of informing the Iraqi authorities about the strikes.

Meanwhile, the Iraqi Presidency urgently called the heads of political parties to hold an emergency meeting to discuss the US attack in Al-Anbar Governorate.

The Presidency "strongly denounced the recent US attacks on the city of Al-Qaim in Al-Anbar Governorate and other Iraqi border areas," deeming it "a clear violation of Iraqi sovereignty."

The Presidency expressed concern that these attacks "could jeopardize the ongoing negotiations to regulate the work of the Global Coalition," emphasizing the counterproductive nature of violence and its tendency to breed further violence.

Simultaneously, the Iraqi Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned David Burger, the Deputy Chief of Mission at the US Embassy in Baghdad, in protest against what the Ministry deems as "American aggression" targeting both Iraqi military and civilian sites.

The Ministry said that Burger would deliver the protest note since the US ambassador, Alina L. Romanowski, is not in the country.

Others in Syria accompanied the US attacks in Iraq.

Earlier today, the US Army Central Command (CENTCOM) reported that its forces "struck more than 85 targets, with numerous aircraft to include long-range bombers flown from United States. The airstrikes employed more than 125 precision munitions."

CENTCOM explained that the facilities that were struck included command and control operations centers, intelligence centers, rockets and missiles, unmanned aerial vehicle storages, and logistics and munition supply chain facilities of "militia groups and their IRGC sponsors who facilitated attacks against US and Coalition forces."

In response, the Syrian Defense Ministry condemned the US strikes in its territory, deeming it a "blatant aggression."

On Saturday, the US military launched airstrikes on dozens of sites related to Iranian-backed forces and the Iranian Revolutionary Guard (IRGC) in Iraq and Syria.

The Syrian Defence Ministry said that US forces' "air aggression" led to several civilians and soldiers being killed, others being wounded, and public and private properties being damaged.

"Occupying parts of Syrian lands by American forces cannot continue ... the Syrian army affirms continuing its war against terrorism until it is eliminated and is determined to liberate the entire Syrian territories from terrorism and occupation," the Ministry said in a statement.

The Ministry claimed that the area targeted by the US attacks is the same area where the "Syrian army is combating ISIS remnants."

The statement added that "the United States and its military forces are involved and allied with ISIS, aiming to revive it as a field arm, both in Syria and Iraq."

Furthermore, the Ministry considered the "aggression as an attempt to weaken the Syrian army's ability to combat terrorism."