Iraqi Hizbullah Brigades Spokesman: U.S. Products Should Be Boycotted Until U.S. Seriously Considers Withdrawing Forces From Iraq; Jordan, Kuwait Must Forbid U.S. From Launching Attacks On Iraq From Their Territories

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On May 7, 2024, Abu Ali Al-Askari, spokesman for the Iran-backed Iraqi Hizbullah Brigades, released a statement declaring that neither the U.S. nor the Iraqi government is serious about withdrawing U.S. forces from the country, calling to boycott U.S products, and urging the UAE, Kuwait, and Jordan to prevent the U.S. from using their territory to launch attacks inside Iraq.[1]

Al-Askari asserts that "we do not sense that the American enemy is serious in its withdrawal of its forces and the dismantling of its spy bases in Iraq." The statement claims that the Iraqi government is also not "as serious as expected" in its actions to expel "those riffraff" from Iraq, "and our reading [of the situation] is what it is."

Al-Askari further states that contracts with the Americans should not be respected "as long as they remain as they are," and that U.S. products should be boycotted.

Referring to the Iraq Development Road, an ongoing infrastructure project seeking to link Asia and Europe through Iraq, Al-Askari believes it to be a source of continuing concern for the Iraqi Hizbullah Brigades, and that the group will require more assurances before the project can go forward.

According to the statement, the UAE's announcement that it will limit American aerial operations from its territory in order to stop attacks on Iraq and Yemen from within its borders requires "corresponding, substantiating actions" to see if "they have learned their lesson." Al-Askari warns Kuwait and Jordan "not to allow attacks against Iraq from their territory." In February, the UAE stated that it would no longer allow U.S. aerial operations against Iraq and Yemen to be launched from the Al-Dhafra airbase in Abu Dhabi without prior notification.

On April 22, the Iran-backed Hizbullah Brigades issued a statement denying it had resumed attacks on U.S. forces in Iraq.[2] However, the Lebanese Hizbullah-affiliated Al-Akhbar daily reported that Iran-backed Iraqi militias have continued to attack U.S. forces, but have adopted a new tactic of not claiming the operations, to prevent the U.S. from retaliating.[3]