Iraqi Hizbullah Spokesman Jaafar Al-Husseini: We Have Been Preparing for Months for Battle against the Americans in Iraq

Jaafar Al-Husseini, spokesman for the Iraqi Hizbullah Brigades, said in a recent TV interview that "the U.S. is the cause of all the tragedies and all the political and economic problems of Iraq" and that "we have made all the preparations for the battle with the Americans in Iraq." In the interview, which aired on Al-Itijah TV on March 7, Al-Husseini said that ISIS is an American creation and that the U.S. military presence in Iraq is designed to support the organization.

Jaafar Al-Husseini: "A battle with the Americans is drawing near. Unfortunately, some people were deceived by the Americans' 'soft war.' Today, we want to highlight our achievements on the ground and our rights. There is a campaign to tarnish the image of the resistance and the PMU. We must protect this image in a clear way rather than be a part of this...."

Host: "Did you just say that you are facing a battle with the Americans? What makes you say this?"

Jaafar Al-Husseini: "For months, we have been getting ready for the battle with the Americans. We have made all the preparations for the battle with the Americans in Iraq. The Americans, having failed in [their] ISIS enterprise – rather, after we foiled the ISIS enterprise – have returned to Iraq under a different guise. We are talking about an American presence in Iraq, and about their intention to expand this presence, as well as about their operations on the ground...."

Host: "What kind of battle with the Americans? Are there American soldiers in Iraq?"

Jaafar Al-Husseini: "No, their tactics are different...."

Host: "Will it be a military battle? A political war?"

Jaafar Al-Husseini: "The battle will be military and political, as well as on the media front, but they will employ different tactics. The method employed by the U.S. between 2003 and 2011 was different from the method it has been employing since it left Iraq. They have brought ISIS, which is an American creation. We have foiled the ISIS enterprise, and, therefore, they are trying to come back using different tactics. The U.S. presence in Iraq poses a great danger to us, the resistance factions. This significant U.S. presence and the areas under American control is a cause for great concern to us. We are well prepared for this.

[...]

"The Americans insisted on the partitioning of Iraq, but have failed in all the governorates. All they left is the city of Mosul, or the Nineveh Governorate in general. They want to succeed in Nineveh, in order to spread this success throughout the region, not only in Iraq. Therefore, we must thwart this enterprise in Nineveh, and then confront the Americans and drive them out of Iraq. The U.S. is the cause of all the tragedies and all the political and economic problems of Iraq."

Host: "But the Americans say that they are fighting terrorism in Iraq. They support the Iraqi army, and they lead the coalition forces that are striking ISIS in Mosul...."

Jaafar Al-Husseini: "I challenge anyone to provide me evidence that the Americans are really fighting ISIS. Show me one piece of evidence."

Host: "Don't you share the common goal of fighting ISIS?"

Jaafar Al-Husseini: "We and the Americans will never be in the same trench, unless we are fighting one another."

Host: "Unless you are fighting one another?"

Jaafar Al-Husseini: "Right. The purpose of the American and the coalition’s military presence in Iraq is to support ISIS. Anyone can ask the commanders who are on the ground in Mosul, as part of the operations in the Left Bank, and they will say that the operations were delayed for days because of the American capriciousness in carrying out the air strikes. Moreover, the Americans prevented the forces from advancing and carrying out their missions on the ground without obtaining American permission. This proves that they are buying time for the ISIS militants. In addition, in all our operations against ISIS, we witnessed the U.S. support for them, whether by weapons drops or by evacuation of people from those areas, or by evacuating some of their people from those areas."