Leader of Iraq’s Liwaa Ansar al-Marjaia Slams ‘Iran’s Agents’

Liwaa Ansar al-Marjaia leader, Hameed al-Yasiri.
Liwaa Ansar al-Marjaia leader, Hameed al-Yasiri.
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Leader of Iraq’s Liwaa Ansar al-Marjaia Slams ‘Iran’s Agents’

Liwaa Ansar al-Marjaia leader, Hameed al-Yasiri.
Liwaa Ansar al-Marjaia leader, Hameed al-Yasiri.

Leader of Liwaa Ansar al-Marjaia faction, Hameed al-Yasiri accused on Sunday Iraq’s Iran loyalists of committing “grand treason.”

Speaking at an Ashura commemoration in the southern city of al-Ramtha, he declared: “Those who are loyal to sides other than the nation are committing grand treason”

“This is great deception. This is what Imam al-Hussein taught us,” he added.

He did not specifically name any side, but was widely understood to be referring to pro-Iran factions.

“Those who take orders from beyond the borders… this is not the doctrine of Imam al-Hussein,” he continued.

Yasiri said he was aware of the danger he would face after making his divisive statements.

“I am aware that some sides are recording these words and sending them to their masters, who will in turn send them to their masters beyond the borders. Someone from the outside will decree my killing or yours on charges of doubting loyalties,” he remarked.

Yasiri’s remarks are unprecedented even though tensions between the various Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) in Iraq are common. The factions are divided between those loyal to the religious authority based in Najaf city and others loyal to Iran. Yasiri’s faction belongs to the former camp.

Qais Khazali, head of the pro-Iran Asa’ib Ahl al-Haq, dismissed Yasiri’s remarks as “trivial”

“It is shocking that such trivialities could be uttered by a cleric from an Imam al-Hussein platform in a city such as al-Ramtha, whose people are diligent and cultured,” he added.



France Expels 12 Algerian Officials in Tit-for-Tat Move amid Diplomatic Tensions

Algerian flags fly at half-staff along the seaside walk in Algiers, Saturday, Sept. 18, 2021. (AP)
Algerian flags fly at half-staff along the seaside walk in Algiers, Saturday, Sept. 18, 2021. (AP)
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France Expels 12 Algerian Officials in Tit-for-Tat Move amid Diplomatic Tensions

Algerian flags fly at half-staff along the seaside walk in Algiers, Saturday, Sept. 18, 2021. (AP)
Algerian flags fly at half-staff along the seaside walk in Algiers, Saturday, Sept. 18, 2021. (AP)

France said Tuesday it was expelling 12 Algerian diplomatic officials a day after Algeria announced the expulsion of the same number of French officials in escalating tensions between the two countries.

Algeria said Monday that its expulsion of 12 French officials was over the arrest of an Algerian consular official by French authorities in a kidnapping case, but relations between the two sides have been deteriorating since last summer. That's when France shifted its position to support Morocco’s autonomy plan for Western Sahara — a disputed territory claimed by the pro-independence Polisario Front, which receives support from Algeria.

Tensions further peaked in November after Algeria arrested French-Algerian writer Boualem Sansal, who is an outspoken critic of the Algerian regime. He has since been sentenced to five years in prison — a verdict he subsequently appealed.

In addition to what French officials called the "symmetrically" calibrated expulsion of 12 Algerian officials, France's ambassador to Algiers also was being recalled home for consultations, a statement from the French presidential palace said Tuesday.

It said Algerian authorities were responsible for "a brutal deterioration in our bilateral relations."

French counterterrorism prosecutors said three Algerian nationals in total were arrested last week and handed preliminary charges of "kidnapping or arbitrary detention … in connection with a terrorist undertaking."

The group is allegedly involved in the April 2024 kidnapping of an Algerian influencer, Amir Boukhors, or Amir DZ, a known critic of the Algerian government with 1.1 million followers on TikTok.

The latest surge in acrimony followed a brief easing of tensions about two weeks ago when French President Emmanuel Macron called Algerian counterpart Abdelmadjid Tebboune. French officials said they had agreed to revive bilateral relations.