What now for the Shiite militias?

Описание: (24 Jul 2017) LEADIN:
In the wake of victory against the Islamic State group in Mosul, Iraq's political, religious and military leaders are debating the future of the country's powerful Shiite militias - the tens of thousands of men who answered a religious call to arms three years ago and played a critical role in beating back the extremists.
Members of the Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) are still conducting training sessions in the southern province of Najaf.
STORYLINE:
On a terrifically hot day - almost 50 degrees - members of the PMF (Popular Mobilisation Forces) follow behind an armoured personnel carrier during a training session in Najaf.
But what does the future hold for these men who stepped into a vacuum when the Iraqi army largely dissolved after IS overran Mosul and pushed within 80 miles (130 kilometres) of the Iraqi capital?
Some of Iraq's leaders are demanding the Iranian-backed forces be disbanded but the militias say their sacrifices on the battlefield and the fact they were sanctioned by Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi have earned them a permanent place in the hierarchy of Iraq's security forces.
Abu Baqer Ibrahim, a PMF trainer, believes that the men will be the security forces for districts and provinces as extremists change their tactics and leave the nation braced for some internal turmoil.
"This needs more planning and new tactics different from the fight against Daesh. The dangers that we are facing now are internal as internal turmoil could happen. The enemies of Iraq might change their strategies against Iraq so as the PMF we have to change our strategy according to threats that we will be facing."
Tens of thousands of men, many of them members of the long-established Shiite militias with close ties to Iran, answered the 2014 call from the country's top Shiite cleric, Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani. In the days that followed, Iraq was flooded with training, money and weapons from Tehran.
Billboards praising the groups - depicting Iraqi and Iranian paramilitary leaders side-by-side - popped up across Baghdad alongside posters honouring the fallen. The government-sanctioned groups are now called the Popular Mobilisation Forces, known as Hashed al-Shaabi in Arabic.
Although the Shiite militias did not play a central role in the battle for the city of Mosul itself, they moved into the deserts held by IS west of the city, massing around the town of Tal Afar and taking a border crossing between Iraq and Syria. They also took control of highways bisecting the Sunni heartland in western Iraq and used as vital military and civilian supply lines.
Iraq's prime minister decision and parliament decree have legalised the PMF and the militia leadership claims their sacrifices have earned them a permanent seat at the table.
"We are part of the state and part of the forces of the state, a force that is related to the leadership of the prime minister," says Ibrahim.
According to the 2017 Iraqi budget, the government-sanctioned Popular Mobilisation Forces now number about 122,000 fighters. The umbrella is dominated by Shiite militias but also includes Sunni and Christian groups.
PMF fighter Ahmad Ghanem, says the outfit is waiting for instructions.
On the outskirts of Najaf, graves of militiamen who died battling IS have swelled among the plots in Wadi al-Salam, the well-known Shiite graveyard that is also the world's largest. Garlands of plastic flowers adorn headstones bearing the crests of the most powerful militia groups: the Badr Brigades, Saraya Salam and Kataib Hezbollah.

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