TEHRAN (Tasnim) – An American Middle East expert described the recent US attacks on positions of Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Units as a “clear violation” of the Arab country’s sovereignty, adding that Washington prefers to continue its occupation of Iraq.
“This (the attack on PMU bases) was a clear violation of Iraq’s sovereignty. However, it isn’t surprising because I would never expect the United States to uphold any of its treaties or agreements with other countries. And Washington has no respect for the sovereignty of other countries because they’re currently maintaining illegal military bases in Syria,” Randi Nord told Tasnim.
She added, “Clearly, Washington is willing to put its own allies and even troops at risk to send a message and continue its occupation of Iraq.”
he US administration in
Washington is to blame for the proliferation of Daesh and other
terrorist groups in the Middle East and killing Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi
doesn’t change this fact, say an American analyst.
Keith Preston, chief editor of
AttacktheSystem.com, said the US has been trying to “weaponize” such
Takfiri outfits against countries opposing the US establishment in the
region, says an American political analyst in Virginia.
HE made the remark in a phone interview
with Press TV on Sunday while commenting on a special operations raid
carried out by the US military in the Syrian province of Idlib, which
killed Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi — the leader of the Daesh Takfiri terrorist
group.
The Joint Special Operations Command
carried out the top-secret operation after receiving actionable
intelligence, according to US military sources, and two Baghdadi’s wives
were also killed in the raid.
“While it’s certainly true that the
United States may have been responsible for the killing of the leader of
the Daesh just like they were responsible for the killing of [Taliban
militant group leader] Osama bin Laden some years back, we also have to
consider the ways in which the United States has been responsible for
the proliferation of these Takfiri terrorist organizations,” Preston
said.
“The United States has claimed now for 18
years that they are waging war against these terrorist organizations
like al-Qaeda, like al-Nusra Front, like the Daesh. At the same time,
the United States has also tried to work both ends against the middle
when it comes to these kinds of organizations. On the one hand, they are
opposed to terrorist attacks by these kinds of groups against American
targets in case they are American allies, but they also try to weaponize
these organizations against America’s geopolitical rivals in the Middle
East,” he added.
The American political commentator said
Washington tries to “use the Daesh as a weapon against Syria, against
Iran, against other forces that are opposed to the United States in the
region as well. The United States, on the one hand, wages its own war
against some of these organizations, and on the other hand, gives them a
free hand when it comes to its effort to use them as a weapon against
other parties in the region.”
Preston also blamed the United States for
its role in providing support to Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, United
Arab Emirates and other nations in the region that spread this Takfiri
ideology that builds these terrorist groups.
“So, it’s not like the US has been the white hat in this particular conflict,” he concluded.
The Idlib operation was conducted only a
few weeks after Trump announced that the US would be withdrawing its
forces from northeastern Syria, clearing the path for an expected
Turkish incursion into the region.
Turkey launched the offensive on October 9
with the aim of purging the northeastern Syrian regions near its border
of US-backed Kurdish militants, whom it views as terrorists linked to
local autonomy-seeking militants of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).
Trump, later however, rowed back on the
withdrawal decision, announcing that a contingent of US Special Forces
would remain in Syria to control its oil fields.
There is growing concern
that US forces that have entered Iraq after retreating from northern
Syria seek to destabilize the country and foment civil unrest, says an
American political analyst.
Iraq on Wednesday rejected any long-term presence of US troops in his
country after their withdrawal from neighboring Syria. Baghdad said
American forces crossing into Iraq could only be there in transit.
“it’s not surprising that the government of Iraq would make a
decision not wanting American troops to be positioned within Iraq,” said
Keith Preston, chief editor of AttacktheSystem.com.
“We have to consider that the United States invaded Iraq in 2003 and
there was a very bloody war took place…so the Iraqis certainly are not
anxious to have American troops return to Iraq,” Preston told Press TV
on Thursday.
“Also there’s been civil unrest in Iraq in recent times; there may be
concerns that the Americans may try to foment civil unrest within Iraq
because of the fact that the Iraqi government has moved closer to Iran,”
he added.
US forces have been deeply unpopular in much of Iraq since their 2003-2011 occupation of the country.
Iraq’s Prime Minister Adil Abdul-Mahdi said after a meeting with
visiting US Defense Secretary Mark Esper on Wednesday that the American
forces were not allowed to remain in Iraq and his government was taking
“all international legal measures” to address the issue.
“We have (already) issued an official statement saying that, and we
are taking all international legal measures. We ask the international
community and the United Nations to perform their roles in this matter,”
he said.
He asserted that any foreign troop presence on Iraqi soil must be
authorized by the government first and should end upon Baghdad’s
request.
Esper had initially told reporters that troops leaving Syria would go
to western Iraq for further operations against scattered Daesh
terrorists and “help defend Iraq”. But he backtracked on Tuesday, saying
Washington aimed to eventually bring the troops home.
In a major U-turn in the US military policy, the White House
announced on October 6 that the US would be withdrawing its forces from
northeastern Syria, clearing the path for an expected Turkish incursion
into the region.
Three days later, Turkey launched the offensive with the aim of
purging the northern Syrian regions near its border of US-backed Kurdish
militants, whom it views as terrorists linked to local autonomy-seeking
militants of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK).
