US not seeking to leave Iraq, justifies presence under pretext of fighting Daesh: Iraqi resistance

The leader of an Iraqi resistance group says the American occupation forces have no intention of leaving the Arab country and justify their illegal presence under the pretext of fighting the now-defunct Takfiri Daesh terrorist group.

Qais al-Khazali, secretary-general of Iraqi resistance movement Asa’ib Ahl al-Haq which is part of Iraq’s anti-terror Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) or Hashd al-Sha’abi, made the statement in an exclusive interview with Arabic-language al-Ahad television network on Friday.

“The Americans do not want to leave Iraq, and when there is a government intention to expel them, they send threatening political messages,” Khazali said.

“Successive governments hesitate to remove foreign forces because of American pressure, and they justify their presence by fighting the terrorist Daesh,” he added, stressing that, “Everyone knows that Iraq declared its victory over the terrorist group in 2017.”

The leader of the Asa’ib Ahl al-Haq resistance group said there were “only 700 Daesh terrorists on Iraqi soil,” and that the primary goal of the US-led military coalition was to “protect American national security, which is linked to the Zionist entity.”

Khazali also underlined that Iraq does not need the presence of the US-led coalition forces to direct air strikes against the terrorist ranks of Daesh.

“Iraq is a strong country and possesses an army and expertise that most countries in the region do not possess, and it can easily build its own capabilities,” he said, adding, “Iraq does not need the presence of the international coalition to direct air strikes against Daesh terrorist.”