Iran-Backed Militias In Iraq: If Israel Or The U.S. Attack Us We Will Strike ‘All [Their] Military And Economic Interests’ In The Region; ‘You Will See Hell With Your Own Eyes’

The following report is now a complimentary offering from MEMRI's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM). For JTTM subscription information, click here.

On November 18, 2024, Israel’s Foreign Minister Gideon Saar sent a letter to the President of the UN Security Council in which he called for “immediate action regarding the activity of the pro-Iranian militias in Iraq, whose territory is being used to attack Israel,” and asserted that Israel has the right to self-defense and to defend its citizens.[1]

The Iran-backed militias in Iraq rejected the claims in the letter, describing them as lies that express “historical hatred” toward the Iraqi people and which are intended to justify an attack on Iraq. They stated that Iraq will respond “forcefully and with determination” to any attempt to violate its sovereignty, and that “the Islamic resistance” in the country will strike “all the military and economic interests of the Zionist-American enemy in the entire region.”

The following is a review of the responses from the Iran-backed Iraqi militias to the letter to the UN Security Council president from Israel’s foreign minister:

On November 20, 2024, the Al-Sadiqoun bloc in the Iraqi parliament, which is affiliated with the Iran-backed Iraqi 'Asaib Ahl Al-Haqq militia, issued an official statement in which it expressed firm support for “the honorable resistance movements in Lebanon, in Palestine, and for all who confront the oppressive occupation.” According to the statement, the Israeli claims, as expressed in the letter from Israeli Foreign Minister Saar, are nothing but efforts to defame Iraq, and lies to justify an attack on the country. The Al-Sadiqoun statement also said that Israel’s hostility toward Iraq is derived from “a historical and religious hatred” for the Iraqi people, and warned that the Iraqi government and its armed forces “are ready and waiting to respond forcefully and with determination to any Zionist attempt to violate the sovereignty of Iraq or its holy places.” It warned that “any deviation will be met with a painful response that will compel the occupation to reconsider its steps.” The statement placed the responsibility for the escalation of the situation in the region on Israel, and on “its supporters in the West and in the U.S.,” and asserted that this support for Israel contributes to the violation of international law and threatens the stability of the region.[2]

On the same day, on its Telegram channel, the Sarkhat Al-Quds Brigades, an Iran-backed Iraqi militia formerly known as Ashab Al-Kahf, issued a statement in which it reiterated that any decision for it to go to war is in the hands of “the source of authority and Al-Wali Al-Faqih” (the jurisprudent ruler, i.e. Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei) and that the Islamic resistance in Iraq “will not surrender, will not kneel down, and threats will not intimidate it.” The militia also threatened, “Our blows will not cease until victory. Our bank of targets is full and will include all the military and economic interests of the Zionist-American enemy in the entire region. Every presence of theirs [in the region] is in range of our drones and missiles, should they attack our country… We repeat our commitment to our resistance and our people in Lebanon and in Gaza: the sons of Iraq will not abandon you. We are with you until victory.”[3]

Also on November 20, on his X account, the Jihad Deputy of the Iran-backed Al-Nujaba Movement in Iraq, Abd Al-Qadir Al-Karbala'i, threatened Israel and its prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, that its drones would continue “to terrorize” them, and added, “If you are tempted to do anything stupid to the great Iraq, then you will see hell with your own eyes.”[4]