Page 32 - AT

A32 FEATURE
Friday 15 February 2019
In heart of Baghdad, IS war museum honors fallen militiamen

By ZEINA KARAM military and the govern-
QASSIM ABDUL-ZAHRA ment fear the Shiite militias
Associated Press will dominate Iraq the way
BAGHDAD (AP) — A few the powerful Revolutionary
steps from Baghdad's cul- Guard does in Iran or the
tural heart and its famous militant Hezbollah group in
book market on al-Mu- Lebanon.
tanabi Street lies the Iraqi The Shiite militias "are build-
capital's latest tourist at- ing economic empires, tak-
traction: a war museum ing control of state recon-
glorifying the sacrifices of struction companies and
thousands of mainly Shiite projects, and developing
militiamen who died fight- into economic organiza-
ing the Islamic State group. tions," said a Western diplo-
The museum is meant mat in Baghdad who spoke
to honor the fallen but it on condition of anonymity
also underscores the Iran- to discuss Iraqi politics.
backed militias' growing The more than 50 militias
clout in the country. Their in Iraq have up to 140,000
political and military might fighters, according to some
soared after they helped estimates and the Popu-
the government defeat IS lar Mobilization Forces it-
— so much so that they are In this Friday, Feb. 1, 2019 photo, commemorative images of militiamen who died fighting the Is- self. They are backed by
now accused by some of lamic State group over the past four years and weapons are on display in the Popular Mobilization tanks and weapons, and
seeking to build a parallel Forces War Museum on al-Mutanabi Street, Baghdad, Iraq. have their own intelligence
state within Iraq. Associated Press agency, operations rooms
Housed inside Baghdad's and court of law.
historic, Ottoman-era al- in Arabic — emerged fol- played a key role in the war garden, families were gath- In an interview with The As-
Qishla building, the muse- lowing a call in June 2014 against IS. ered to enjoy the sun as sociated Press last month,
um displays rocket launch- by Iraq's top Shiite cleric, That made the Iran-backed music played in the back- the leader of one of the
ers, drones and cannons Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sis- militiamen an indirect ally ground. Inside the building, most powerful of the mi-
from the four-year fight tani, for volunteers to fight to the American forces, somber military music ac- litias, Qais al-Khazali, said
with IS. Visitors can browse against IS. who returned to Iraq in companied the exhibits. their existence compli-
through the war booty and At the time, Islamic State 2014 at the invitation of the In 2018 parliamentary elec- ments that of the Iraqi mili-
other memorabilia from the militants had overrun the government to help battle tions — the first after the tary and suggested that
front lines, as well as per- northern city of Mosul, Iraq's IS. A U.S.-led coalition pro- victory over IS — the mili- disbanding them was not
sonal belongings fighters second-largest, and much vided crucial air support tias' coalition won 48 seats, in the cards as long as
left behind on battlefields of northern and western as Iraqi forces regrouped making it the second-larg- there's an ongoing military
across the country. Iraq, coming dangerously and drove IS out in a costly est bloc in Parliament and threat to Iraq. At the mu-
"I feel the spirits of the mar- close to Baghdad and campaign. guaranteeing the militias a seum, images of the fallen
tyrs floating around this Shiite shrines farther south The militias lost about 7,000 say in formal politics. Under militiamen hang down from
space. I feel that Iraq exists as Iraq's military and secu- fighters in the war. They in- the new budget, militiamen the ceiling, printed on light
because of them. ... They rity forces collapsed in the cluded some Christian, Ya- are for the first time being bulbs. Boots, watches and
are the pulse of Iraq," said face of the onslaught. zidi, and Sunni militias but paid the same salaries as eyeglasses are displayed
55-year-old teacher Umm Tens of thousands heeded were dominated by Shiite soldiers. next to flowers that honor
Hassanin al-Oukeily on a the cleric's call, enlisting groups with close ties to The mix of arms and po- the martyrs.
visit to the museum this in multiple militia factions, Iran. They came out of the litical power is a dangerous Visitors walk around life-size
week. many of which had existed war with the image of an dynamic for Iraq, a country replicas of militia outposts,
The mainly Shiite militias — for years and even fought almost holy force protect- with a history of bloody sec- complete with real sniper ri-
known collectively as the American forces in Iraq. ing Iraq's Shiite Muslim ma- tarian strife. Iraq's Sunni mi- fles, sandbags and camou-
Popular Mobilization Forc- Sanctioned by the Iraqi jority. nority and also some in the flage nets from the field.q
es, or "Hashed al-Shaabi" government, the militias That kind of popular aura
has helped enshrine the
militias as a major political
and paramilitary player in
post-IS Iraq. Militia factions
are present in almost every
Iraqi province, in many cas-
es deeply embedded in lo-
cal governance and rival-
ing state institutions. Posters
of dead fighters adorn
shop windows in Baghdad
and elsewhere.
"There are no words to de-
scribe my feelings right
now," said al-Oukeily, the
In this Friday, Feb. 1, 2019 photo, body armor shredded by shrap- teacher, tears in her eyes In this Friday, Feb. 1, 2019 photo, statues and other commemo-
nel that was worn by a militiamen who died fighting the Islamic as she made her way rative works depicting the fight with the Islamic State group, are
State group, is on display in the Popular Mobilization Forces War around the museum with on display in the Popular Mobilization Forces War Museum on
Museum on al-Mutanabi Street, Baghdad, Iraq. her daughter. al-Mutanabi Street, Baghdad, Iraq.
Associated Press Outside, in the al-Qishla Associated Press