Why some Iraqis want the PMU to be dissolved
The Popular Mobilization Units rushed to aid Iran in the wake of punishing floods, leaving many Iraqis to believe that the PMU overlooks Iraqi suffering.
Former Iraqi Prime Minister Ayad Allawi called on April 13 for the dissolution of the Popular Mobilization Units (PMU), stating that the PMU mission came to an end with the defeat of the Islamic State (IS).
This comes only several weeks after the leader of al-Hal party, Jamal al-Karbouli, accused an armed faction claiming affiliation with the PMU of causing the March 2019 sinking of a ferry in Mosul, which claimed the lives of dozens of citizens.
On April 14, Sadrist movement leader Muqtada al-Sadr also verbally attacked the PMU for “helping prevent floods in Iran while overlooking the suffering of Iraqis,” given that similar floods have taken place in southern Iraq.
On April 16, the PMU also faced criticism in Iran for its participation, among other non-Iranian groups loyal to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, in flood relief. Yet the Iranian Kayhan newspaper criticized those who opposed the foreign help provided to the Iranian people.
