France’s Macron Calls on Iraq to Disarm Hashd al-Shaabi
French President Emanuel Macron has called on Baghdad to disarm the Shi’ite militias of Hashd al-Shaabi, who are closely linked to the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Marking the New Year during a speech to diplomats of his country on Thursday, Macron emphasized on the necessity of stripping all the militia groups of weapons to ensure the return of stability to Iraq, as reported by Kurdistan 24.
This is however not the first time the French president is making such a call on Baghdad. Earlier in December 2017 while holding a press conference with the Kurdistan Region Prime Minister Nechirvan Barzani in Paris, Macron called for “the gradual” dismantling of all Iraqi militias.
“It is essential that there is a gradual demilitarization, in particular of the [Shia militias] that established itself in the last few years in Iraq,” he said back then.
He also shed light during his New Year speech on the political deadlock between the Kurdistan Region and Iraqi central governments, urging the sides to return to talks for resolving their disputes.
“It is necessary that both the Iraqi government and the [KRG] begin a serious and comprehensive dialogue to reach a political solution to the problems between the two sides.”
Source: BasNews
