Anti-American Sentiment in Iraq, US Threatens Baghdad
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Roshan Amiri
- . December 7, 2023
- . Update: December 7, 2023 2:22 pm
US strikes inside Iraq amid Israel’s war against the Hamas in Gaza has heightened tensions between Baghdad and Washington. Calls are growing louder in Iraq to expel US military forces from the country.
Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia ul- Sudani told CNN in September that Iraq no longer needs combat forces, whether from the US or from the rest of the coalition countries. He highlighted that that the ISIS no longer poses a threat.
The US and UK forces have been in Iraq ever since their coalition toppled the Ba’athist regime of Saddam Hussein. In the last two decades, Baghdad has witnessed civil war, armed groups vying for power and coalition forces igniting chaos. Iraq has also enjoyed years of stability amid fragile peace. After the US assassinated Iran’s Quds Force Commander Qassem Soleimani in January 2020, Iraq’s parliament voted to end the international coalition and eject foreign forces from the country.
Iraq Anti-American Sentiment
Ammar al-Shibli, Iraqi lawmaker, believes Iraqi security forces can manage any internal or external battle and there is no longer a need for the presence of US forces, especially after ISIS became a thing of the past. But back in March 2023, retired Marine Corps Gen. Frank McKenzie said Iraq is still under pressure from ISIS. “We still help them continue that fight. We’ve done a lot of things to help them improve the control of their own sovereignty, which is of very high importance to the Iraqis.”
Anti-American sentiment gained momentum in Baghdad when the US struck PMU troops, Iraq’s frontline forces who fought against ISIS militants. Iraq condemned US and described the operation as a violation of the country’s sovereignty, and a violation of international coalition’s stated missions against ISIS on Iraqi soil. “The Iraqi government is solely dedicated to enforcing the law and holding violators accountable, a prerogative exclusively within its purview. No party of foreign agency has the right to assume this role, as it contradicts Iraqi constitutional sovereignty and international law.”
The US is actually using ISIS as a shield to stay in Iraq. The actual reason, no doubt, is Iran. Over the years, Iran’s political influence and militia strength in Iraq and across the region has become a security concern for the United States.
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US Threatens Iraq
Amid calls to leave Iraq, the US has been blackmailing Baghdad. A senior Iraqi official said the US has threatened to cut relations and prevent funds to Iraq, similar to 1991 and 2003 economic blockade. While the threats may have affected Baghdad, factions like Kataib Hizbullah, Ansar Allah al-Wafa, and Harakat al-Nujaba have rejected Washington’s ultimatums.
Ali al-Shammari, an Iraqi political analyst, says the international coalition is an American sham to continue suspicious activity to strengthen US influence in the region. And things are getting ugly. Iraqi resistance factions have once again come to light because of US’s support for Israel’s war in Gaza. They have been targeting US troops in Syria.
For Iraq, US strike on the PMU was the last straw. And now it wants US forces out of the country. Iraqi politicians want the parliament to expel American forces from Iraqi soil.
