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Iraq’s Defense Minister Says Suspicious Parties Targeting Him for Defending Protesters

A man puts an Iraqi flag on the coffin of a demonstrator who was killed at anti-government protests in Nassiriya, during the funeral in Najaf, Iraq November 24, 2019. REUTERS/Alaa al-Marjani
A man puts an Iraqi flag on the coffin of a demonstrator who was killed at anti-government protests in Nassiriya, during the funeral in Najaf, Iraq November 24, 2019. REUTERS/Alaa al-Marjani
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Iraq’s Defense Minister Says Suspicious Parties Targeting Him for Defending Protesters

A man puts an Iraqi flag on the coffin of a demonstrator who was killed at anti-government protests in Nassiriya, during the funeral in Najaf, Iraq November 24, 2019. REUTERS/Alaa al-Marjani
A man puts an Iraqi flag on the coffin of a demonstrator who was killed at anti-government protests in Nassiriya, during the funeral in Najaf, Iraq November 24, 2019. REUTERS/Alaa al-Marjani

The Iraqi Defense Ministry revealed that a media campaign has been launched against Defense Minister Najah al-Shammari by parties who are unsatisfied with his backing for anti-government protesters.

The ministry said that Shammari has expressed support to protester demands, mainly after disclosing that a third party has been targeting protesters and security forces on the streets.

Several Iraqi media outlets quoted reports published in Sweden as saying that Shammari, who became a Swedish citizen in 2015, is involved in harassment cases and forging documents related to medical insurance.

The ministry posted a statement on its Facebook page dismissing the reports as "a cheap attempt to discredit" the minister.

It said a third party is directly involved in the publishing of such reports especially after Shammari accused it of killing protesters.

A great number of Iraqis blame Iran and its militias for opening fire on demonstrators.

"We confirm that the minister has now hired a Swedish lawyer in order to file a lawsuit against the Swedish and Arab newspapers and websites that published this false information," the ministry’s statement read.

An intelligence source told Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper that the campaign against the minister is attributed to his rejection to purchase Iranian defense systems and weaponry.

The source said the problem with Shammari is that he rejected a deal to purchase Khordad 15 (surface-to-air missile system) and Russia’s S-300, upgraded by Iran.

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Sudan’s Paramilitaries Seize a Key Area along with the Border with Libya and Egypt

A Sudanese army soldier walks toward a truck-mounted gun left behind by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), in Salha, south of Omdurman, a day after recapturing it from the RSF, on May 21, 2025. (Photo by Ebrahim Hamid / AFP)
A Sudanese army soldier walks toward a truck-mounted gun left behind by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), in Salha, south of Omdurman, a day after recapturing it from the RSF, on May 21, 2025. (Photo by Ebrahim Hamid / AFP)
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Sudan’s Paramilitaries Seize a Key Area along with the Border with Libya and Egypt

A Sudanese army soldier walks toward a truck-mounted gun left behind by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), in Salha, south of Omdurman, a day after recapturing it from the RSF, on May 21, 2025. (Photo by Ebrahim Hamid / AFP)
A Sudanese army soldier walks toward a truck-mounted gun left behind by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), in Salha, south of Omdurman, a day after recapturing it from the RSF, on May 21, 2025. (Photo by Ebrahim Hamid / AFP)

Sudanese paramilitaries at war with the country’s military for over two years claimed to have seized a strategic area along the border with neighboring Libya and Egypt.

The Rapid Support Forces said in a statement Wednesday that they captured the triangular zone, fortifying their presence along Sudan’ s already volatile border with chaos-stricken Libya, The Associated Press said.

The RSF’s announcement came hours after the military said it had evacuated the area as part of “its defensive arrangements to repel aggression” by the paramilitaries.

On Tuesday the military accused the forces of powerful Libyan commander Khalifa Hafter of supporting the RSF’s attack on the area, in a “blatant aggression against Sudan, its land, and its people.”

Hafter’s forces, which control eastern and southern Libya, rejected the claim, saying in a statement that the Sudanese accusations were “a blatant attempt to export the Sudanese internal crisis and create a virtual external enemy.”

The attack on the border area was the latest twist in Sudan’s civil war which erupted in April 2023 when tensions between the Sudanese army and RSF exploded with street battles in the capital, Khartoum that quickly spread across the country.

The war has killed at least 24,000 people, though the number is likely far higher. It has driven about 13 million people from their homes, including 4 million who crossed into neighboring countries. It created the world's worst humanitarian crisis, and parts of the country have been pushed into famine.

The fighting has been marked by atrocities including mass rape and ethnically motivated killings that amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity, especially in Darfur, according to the U.N. and international rights groups.