Baghdad: Iraqi militias backed by Iran have agreed to temporarily halt attacks targeting the American presence in Iraq, on the condition that US-led coalition troops withdraw from the country in line with a parliamentary resolution, three militia officials have said.
The militia officials spoke on Sunday, just hours after a roadside bomb targeted a convoy that was transporting equipment for the US-led coalition, damaging one vehicle, an Iraqi army statement said. The attack on a highway south of Baghdad prompted questions over whether such a truce could hold across all militia factions.
Roadside bombs and in particular rocket attacks targeting the US embassy in Baghdad — located inside the heavily fortified Green Zone — have become a frequent occurrence and have strained ties between Washington and Baghdad.
The militia factions offered a truce and will refrain from targeting the US in Iraq, including the embassy, on the condition that all American-led forces withdraw within an “acceptable timeframe,” said Mohammed Mohie, a spokesman for the powerful Iran-backed Kataib Hezbollah.
“If it does not withdraw, the resistance factions will resume their military activities with all the capabilities available to them,” he said.
Two other factions from different Iran-backed groups echoed Mohie’s comments, without specifying a length for the truce, and said it was open-ended. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to give statements.
Read the article in The Sydney Morning Herald (AP).