Iran-Backed Iraqi Militia Refuses to Stand Down

Iraq’s prime minister has pledged to disband Iran’s Shiite militias by September 30, the deadline for the withdrawal of United States’ forces from Iraq. But one Iraqi Shiite militia sponsored by Iran stated on Wednesday that it would not disarm unless the U.S. and Turkey completely withdraw and the Peshmerga, a Kurdish militia, disbands.

It’s a signal of Iran’s enduring influence in Iraq, which aligns with biblical prophecy.

• The militia, Kata’ib Hezbollah, is affiliated with but separate from Lebanese Hezbollah. Along with other Shiite militias that constitute the Popular Mobilization Forces, it was grafted into the Iraqi military in 2016.
• The Iraqi government has sought to control pmf groups, with mixed results. After Hamas, another Iranian proxy, massacred Israeli civilians in 2023, pmf militia members fought the U.S. in Iraq, and the Iraqi government could not stop the fighting. During the current war between the U.S. and Israel against Iran, pmf fighters also attacked Saudi Arabia, an American ally.

Since 1994, Trumpet editor in chief Gerald Flurry has said that Iran would get control of Iraq. He made the same prediction in 2003, after the U.S. invaded the country.

Events like Kata’ib Hezbollah’s declaration show Iran and its proxies aren’t going anywhere. They have control over the country. Our February 2024 issue states:

Iraq could have taken many other directions since 1994. It could have remained under the totalitarian fist of Saddam Hussein or a handpicked successor. The United States could have stayed in Iraq long term, as it has in South Korea or Western Europe. Iraq’s oil wealth could have transformed it into a prosperous country that wouldn’t need or want Iran.

Instead, Iraq has fallen to Iran, just as Mr. Flurry predicted nearly 30 years ago.

To follow the history of Mr. Flurry’s forecasts on Iraq and Iran over the past three decades, read The King of the South.