Shia cleric: Shia Paramilitary who fought against IS- include in Iraq

     Written by : SMTV24x7 | Sat, Dec 16, 2017, 12:39 AM

Shia cleric: Shia Paramilitary who fought against IS- include in Iraq

Iraq, Dec 15: Iraqi Shia paramilitary groups who took part in the war against Islamic State militants should be incorporated into state security bodies, the nation's top Shia cleric said.

In a message delivered at the Friday sermon in the holy city of Kerbala through one of his representatives, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani said all weapons used in fighting the insurgents should be brought under the control of the Iraqi government.

Sistani's position is in line with Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, who wants to prevent the commanders of the militias known as Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) from using the power and clout acquired during the war in elections due on May 12.

Sistani was the author of a landmark fatwa, or religious decree, which urged Iraqis to volunteer for the war on Islamic State after the government's armed forces collapsed in 2014 as the militants swept through swathes of Iraq to reach the gates of Baghdad.