{"id":41968,"date":"2020-10-11T16:54:25","date_gmt":"2020-10-11T16:54:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/uncategorized\/2020\/10\/11\/iran-backed-militias-offer-truce-for-us-troop-withdrawal\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T07:21:53","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T07:21:53","slug":"iran-backed-militias-offer-truce-for-us-troop-withdrawal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/airforcetimes\/flashpoints\/2020\/10\/11\/iran-backed-militias-offer-truce-for-us-troop-withdrawal\/","title":{"rendered":"Iran-backed militias offer truce for US troop withdrawal"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

BAGHDAD (AP) \u2014 Iraqi militias backed by Iran<\/a> have agreed to temporarily halt attacks targeting the American presence<\/a> in Iraq on the condition that U.S.-led coalition troops withdraw from the country in line with a parliamentary resolution, three of the militia officials said Sunday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The militia officials spoke to The Associated Press just hours after a roadside bomb targeted a convoy transporting equipment for the U.S.-led coalition on a highway south of Baghdad, damaging one vehicle, an Iraqi army statement said. The attack prompted questions over whether such a truce could hold across all militia factions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Roadside bombs and especially rocket attacks targeting the U.S. Embassy \u2014 located inside the heavily fortified Green Zone in Baghdad \u2014 have become a frequent occurrence and have strained ties between Baghdad and Washington.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The militia factions offered a truce and will refrain from targeting the U.S. in Iraq, including the the U.S. Embassy, on the condition that American forces withdraw within an \u201cacceptable timeframe,\u201d said Mohammed Mohie, a spokesman for the powerful Iran-backed Kataib Hezbollah.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf it does not withdraw, the resistance factions will resume their military activities with all the capabilities available to them,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Two other factions from different Iran-backed groups echoed Mohie\u2019s comments, without specifying a length of the truce, and said it was open-ended. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to give statements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Iraqi lawmakers vote in January on a non-binding resolution to oust U.S.-led coalition troops in the country, following a Washington-directed drone strike that killed Iranian general Qassim Soleimani and Iraqi militia commander Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis outside Baghdad\u2019s international airport.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
This photo released by the Iraqi Prime Minister Press Office shows a burning vehicle at the Baghdad International Airport following an airstrike, in Baghdad, Iraq, early Friday, Jan. 3, 2020. The Pentagon said Thursday that the U.S. military has killed Gen. Qassem Soleimani, the head of Iran’s elite Quds Force, at the direction of President Donald Trump. (Iraqi Prime Minister Press Office via AP)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The militia factions’ comments indicate some deescalation following weeks of tensions. The Trump has administration has warned Iraq\u2019s leadership it would close the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad<\/a> if the militia groups were not contained. American officials have said that while it was a serious threat, it was not an imminent ultimatum. In September, the Trump administration shortened a crucial sanctions waiver required for Iraq to import Iranian energy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The U.S. has blamed Iran-backed militia groups, in particular Kataib Hezbollah, for perpetrating attacks on the American presence in Iraq.<\/p>\n\n\n\t