Iraq’s PMF: Ready to confront any threat as we monitor Syria developments

Shafaq News/ On Friday, the Head of Iraq's Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), Falih Al-Fayyadh, expressed the PMF's readiness to confront any potential threats following the opposition's takeover in Syria and the fall of Bashar al-Assad's regime.

Al-Fayyadh's remarks came during a speech at a memorial event marking the fifth anniversary of the assassination of Iranian General Qasem Soleimani and PMF Deputy Head Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, killed in a US airstrike while leaving Baghdad International Airport on January 3, 2020.

“Some are trying to scare us with the unknown, an invisible enemy, and shifting threats," he said. "We are closely monitoring developments around us in Syria and beyond."

The PMF head also affirmed, “We do not see any imminent threat, nor do we face an enemy in trenches or foxholes, except for a group of rats hiding in their burrows in Kirkuk, Saladin, and Al-Anbar,” adding, “Our armed forces, including the PMF, are fully prepared to face any emergency.”

Notably, officials warn that a security vacuum in post-Assad Syria could be exploited by extremist groups to expand their influence, posing major risks to Iraq and the broader region. The potential for heightened militant activity along the Iraq-Syria border has prompted Iraq to deploy military reinforcements to the area.

Earlier today, Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani expressed concern over the potential fallout from instability in Syria, recalling how ISIS exploited the Syrian conflict in 2014 to seize control of nearly a third of Iraq.

"Any disruption in Syrian prisons would compel us to confront terrorism," al-Sudani warned, noting that the unorganized release of prisoners following Al-Assad's fall could enable ISIS members to regroup and infiltrate Iraq.

The PM reiterated Iraq’s stance on border security, vowing to prevent weapons and armed groups from crossing into Iraq from Syria.