Iraq’s PMU mobilizes massive security force for Arbaeen procession
The Popular Mobilization Units (PMU), an umbrella organization responsible for coordinating resistance forces in Iraq, has commissioned tens of thousands of its members to ensure the maximum security of this year’s Arbaeen procession.
The PMU said on Tuesday that it had deployed 54,000 personnel, organized into 70 regiments mostly along Iraq’s borders, to guarantee the security of millions of pilgrims visiting the country for Arbaeen rituals, according to a report by the Iraqi News Agency (INA).
Deputy Chief of Staff of the PMU for Operations, Yasser Hussein al-Issawi, said at a news conference that the PMU had also opened new command centers in three provinces in Iraq’s Middle Euphrates region to better coordinate the security-related issues in those provinces.
“…there is a high level of coordination between the PMU, the security forces, and the Pilgrimage Committee to ensure the success of the security and service plan,” Issawi said.
He said members of the PMU, known in Iraq as Hashd al-Shaabi, had been deployed along all roads and routes leading to the holy city of Karbala, where millions of pilgrims congregate to visit the holy shrine of Imam Hussein on Arbaeen, the day that marks the end of a 40-day mourning period commemorating the 7th-century martyrdom of Imam Hussein, the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).
Other PMU officials said the organization had established 577 security checkpoints as part of its field deployment to secure the routes serving Arbaeen pilgrims, while also commissioning more than 500 medical teams to provide services to the pilgrims.
The announcement comes nearly a week after PMU positions serving Arbaeen pilgrims came under joint attacks by the United States and Saudi Arabia. More than two dozen people, including PMU members and Iranian advisors, were killed in the attacks.
The PMU has vowed to retaliate against the attacks, with security experts believing the organization has delayed its plans to respond to the attacks out of respect for the Arbaeen processions.
The PMU has been a major part of Iraq’s years-long efforts to restore security after the Arab country was invaded by the United States and allies in 2003.
The organization has successfully defeated terrorist groups operating in various parts of Iraq, while also helping the central government in Baghdad in its post-war reconstruction endeavor.
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