Iraq Security Committee Wants PM to Have Clear Position on Foreign Forces

An Iraqi soldier stands guard near a US military air carrier at the Qayyarah Airfield West, Mosul (File photo: AFP)
An Iraqi soldier stands guard near a US military air carrier at the Qayyarah Airfield West, Mosul (File photo: AFP)
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Iraq Security Committee Wants PM to Have Clear Position on Foreign Forces

An Iraqi soldier stands guard near a US military air carrier at the Qayyarah Airfield West, Mosul (File photo: AFP)
An Iraqi soldier stands guard near a US military air carrier at the Qayyarah Airfield West, Mosul (File photo: AFP)

Iraq’s security and defense parliamentary committee will be discussing the presence of foreign forces in the country with Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi, before his upcoming meeting with US President Donald Trump in Washington.

MP Badr al-Ziyadi said the committee intends to hold a meeting with Kadhimi within the next two days.

He explained that the Prime Minister plans to discuss with US officials the withdrawal of US forces from Iraq.

Ziyadi, who is a member of the committee, pointed out that the parliament’s demand for the pullout of foreign forces from the country is binding and not subject to discussion or procrastination.

He added that the committee will hold any party trying to violate that decision accountable.

The Fatah bloc led by Hadi al-Amiri began pressuring the Iraqi government to file a lawsuit against the US over the killing of Iranian general Qassem Soleimani and the deputy head of the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, earlier this year.

In a related development, unidentified gunmen attacked a convoy of trucks carrying US logistical equipment on Diwaniyah southern highway.

A security source said the gunmen were in two cars and forced three trucks to stop on the highway, asking the drivers to leave their vehicles before setting them on fire.

The source added that the trucks were carrying equipment for the US army and the international coalition forces, noting that the gunmen escaped before the security forces arrived at the scene to question the drivers.

Meanwhile, the Iraqi forces launched phase four of the “Iraqi Heroes” operation against terrorist organizations in Diyala governorate on the border with Iran, along with the government’s operation to control border crossings with Iran, under the direct supervision of the Prime Minister.

The Tribal Mobilization Forces also started pursuing ISIS terrorists in the western Anbar province, and the Media cell announced that the operation aims to comb several areas in the desert and prevent terrorists from infiltrating the cities.

In Nineveh, the Interior Ministry’s intelligence unit arrested an ISIS commander wanted in line with the provisions of Article 4 of the Anti-Terrorism Law.

The ministry issued a statement explaining that the detainee held an administrative post in ISIS and admitted during investigations that he is a member of the terrorist organization.



Hezbollah: Any Truce Must Swiftly End Fighting, Preserve Lebanese Sovereignty

A Lebanese army inspection team checks destruction at the site of an overnight Israeli airstrike that targeted one of their positions in the southern Lebanese coastal town of Sarafand on November 20, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (Photo by Mahmoud ZAYYAT / AFP)
A Lebanese army inspection team checks destruction at the site of an overnight Israeli airstrike that targeted one of their positions in the southern Lebanese coastal town of Sarafand on November 20, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (Photo by Mahmoud ZAYYAT / AFP)
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Hezbollah: Any Truce Must Swiftly End Fighting, Preserve Lebanese Sovereignty

A Lebanese army inspection team checks destruction at the site of an overnight Israeli airstrike that targeted one of their positions in the southern Lebanese coastal town of Sarafand on November 20, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (Photo by Mahmoud ZAYYAT / AFP)
A Lebanese army inspection team checks destruction at the site of an overnight Israeli airstrike that targeted one of their positions in the southern Lebanese coastal town of Sarafand on November 20, 2024, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hezbollah. (Photo by Mahmoud ZAYYAT / AFP)

A Hezbollah official said on Wednesday that any US-brokered ceasefire deal between the group and Israel must end fighting swiftly and must preserve Lebanon's sovereignty, an apparent reference to Israel's stance that it will keep striking the Iran-backed group even with a truce in place.

Speaking to Hezbollah media, Mahmoud Qmati said that he was neither overly optimistic nor overly pessimistic about the prospects of a truce.

The US proposal could see Israeli ground forces leave Lebanon and Hezbollah militants withdraw away from the Israeli border. More Lebanese army troops and UN peacekeepers would be sent to a buffer zone in southern Lebanon as part of the deal.

But CNN has reported that an Israeli source familiar with the talks cast doubt on the likelihood of an imminent deal, noting that Hezbollah’s refusal to accept Israel’s demand for the right to strike the group in the event of a ceasefire violation could jeopardize the process. Without this clause, the source said, it was uncertain whether Israel’s prime minister could get cabinet approval for the agreement.

Hezbollah began firing rockets into northern Israel the day after the Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023 in what it said was solidarity with the Palestinians. Israel launched retaliatory airstrikes, and all-out war erupted in September.

Israeli bombardment has killed more than 3,500 people in Lebanon and wounded almost 15,000, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry. It also displaced nearly 1.2 million, or a quarter of Lebanon’s population. On the Israeli side, 87 soldiers and 50 civilians have been killed by rockets, drones and missiles, and tens of thousands of Israelis have been evacuated from homes near the border.

Hezbollah said its chief Sheikh Naim Qassem would give a speech Wednesday, a day after cancelling a similar announcement.

A statement from the group announced the speech by Qassem would be "today," without specifying a time.