The crossfire between the US and Tehran against pro- and anti-Iranian militias on Iraqi soil threatens to escalate into open conflict, fueled by the rising casualties among regular Iraqi and Kurdish soldiers

…Washington and Israel accuse [Popular Mobilization Forces] of being proxies for Iran. The site attacked on Wednesday houses barracks for regular soldiers, but it is a base shared with PMF units…

“Until now, they hadn’t attacked Iraqi soldiers…”

The ruling Shia coalition government finds it difficult to disarm the militias, as requested by U.S. President Donald Trump, especially in the context of a regional war where taking sides against Iran would mean aligning with the “Zionist enemy” [referring to Israel].

…“The U.S. A-10 is using bases in Jordan; Arab countries are already joining the war,”…

After decades of joint training exercises between U.S. Marines and Iraqi soldiers, including with the PMF fighters who battled ISIS, resentment toward the U.S. is growing. “We’ve been allies for so long, but the only one they provide air cover for is Israel,”…