Private militias in Iraq

The term militia in contemporary Iraq refers to armed groups that fight on behalf of or as part of the Iraqi government, the Mahdi Army and Badr Organization being two of the biggest. Many predate the overthrow of Saddam Hussein, but some have emerged since, such as the Facilities Protection Service.

Since the 2014 collapse of the Iraqi army in the North of Iraq in the face of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, and the fatwa by the Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani calling for jihad or hashad shaabi ("popular mobilization") against ISIL, militias have become even more prominent in Iraq.

According to Eric David, professor of Middle East politics at Rutgers University, "They get some salary, they get a rifle, they get a uniform, they get the idea of belonging, protection from a group." However, he also notes that "People in [Mahdi Army] only get sporadic incomes. It's also very dangerous. You might be fighting another militia, such as the Badr organization, or worse the American army or the Iraqi army." It is stated that Iran is backing the militias, including through the Qods Force.

The militias have also received American weapons, which were handed over to them from the Iraqi government.

Militias in Iraq as of 2014.

Nouri al-Maliki asked political parties to dismantle their militias on 5 October 2006. He also stressed that militias are "part of the government", that there is a "political solution", and finally that they should "dissolve themselves" because "force would not work." He blamed the sectarian violence on "al Qaeda in Iraq". He has also condemned "Saddam Hussein loyalists".Lindsey Graham has said, "You are not going to have a political solution [in Iraq] with this much violence." This has led to growing concerns about al-Maliki's unwillingness to eliminate Shia militias. The Mahdi Army, a group linked to Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, is held responsible for "execution-style killings" of 11 Iraqi troops in August 2006. Some U.S. officials posit that the militias are a more serious threat to Iraq's stability than the Sunni insurgency. Additionally, U.S.-led coalition troops have been "told hands off Sadr City because Maliki is dependent upon Sadr, the Mahdi Army." However, in late January, Maliki reversed his decision [1].

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