Iraq’s Shiite militias hope battlefield wins can secure electoral victory
An electoral coalition formed by some pro-Iranian Shiite Popular Mobilization Units is confident it can secure enough seats in parliament to form a majority and claim the premiership.
Baghdad is in the midst of an electoral campaign, with nearly two weeks remaining before the Iraqi parliamentary elections on May 12. Large posters of candidates line the streets of the capital, alongside pictures of members of the Iraqi armed forces and of Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) forces killed in the fight against the Islamic State (IS).
Prominent figures of the PMU, also known as Hashid Shaabi, allied in the Fateh (Conquest) coalition are at the forefront of the race, bolstered by the organization's role in the victory over IS in December 2017. In a conversation with Al-Monitor, Naim al-Aboudi, the spokesman for PMU Asaib Ahl al-Haq (League of the Righteous), discussed the elections and the evolution of the group in the wake of the fight against IS.
