Shamkhani meets PMU chairman, heads of Palestinian resistance movements
“Expulsion of foreign forces from Iraq will boost regional stability”
Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council Ali Shamkhani held separate meetings with the leaders of Iraq's Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) and Palestinian resistance movements on Saturday.
In his meeting with the chairman of Iraq's Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) Falih al-Fayyadh, Shamkhani called for efforts to expedite the implementation of the Iraqi parliament’s resolution on the expulsion of foreign forces, describing it as a great stride in improving regional security and stability.
Shamkhani said rapid action in carrying out the Iraqi parliament’s resolution will dramatically reduce the political tensions in Iraq and mark a major stride in the promotion of regional stability and security, Tasnim News Agency reported.
Highlighting the influential role of Popular Mobilization Units, also known as Hashd al-Shaabi, in ensuring Iraq’s security and stability, Shamkhani stressed the need for closer coordination between the PMU and the Iraqi Army.
Solidarity among the Iraqi people, government and armed forces is the prelude to sustainable security in the Arab country, he added.
Iraq’s parliamentary elections
Shamkhani described the upcoming parliamentary elections in Iraq as a major event that would maintain democracy and stabilize the political role of the Iraqi people in deciding their own fate, stressing that vigilance and solidarity among the Iraqi political, religious and ethnic groups will prevent foreign interference in such a major event.
For his part, Fayyadh congratulated Iran on its successful presidential election, saying the Islamic Republic’s political and security stability will help preserve sustainable security in the region.
He also described Hashd al-Shaabi as a legal organization that complements the Iraqi Army, saying the existence of such a unit that signifies the participation of people in ensuring their security has disappointed the enemies and terrorist groups seeking to incite insecurity and instability in Iraq.
In January 2020, Iraq’s parliament passed a resolution calling on the government to end all foreign troop presence in Iraq following the assassination of top Iranian and Iraqi anti-terror commanders, Lieutenant General Qassem Soleimani and Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis by the US in Iraq.
Failed move
In a separate meeting with Secretary-General of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad Movement Ziad al-Nakhala and Head of Hamas Political Bureau Ismail Haniyeh on Saturday, Shamkhani condemned any move that would strengthen and expand the Israeli occupation of Palestinian lands and called the implementation of the evil plan to normalize relations with the regime by some Arab countries a failed step, according to Iran Press.
Shamkhani congratulated the brilliant achievements of the resistance in Operation Al-Quds Sword against the Israeli regime and praised the pivotal role of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad Movement and Hamas in fighting against the Zionist regime and inflicting a defeat on the occupiers.
Israel launched a brutal bombing campaign against the besieged Gaza Strip on May 10, following Palestinian retaliation against violent raids on worshipers at Al-Aqsa Mosque and the regime’s plans to force a number of Palestinian families out of their homes at the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of East Al-Quds.
According to Gaza’s Health Ministry, 260 Palestinians were killed in the Israeli offensive, including 66 children and 40 women. At least 1,948 others were also wounded.
In response, Palestinian resistance movements launched Operation Al-Quds Sword and fired more than 4,000 rockets and missiles into the occupied territories, killing 12 Israelis.
Referring to more than 70 years of resistance of the Palestinian people to liberate Holy Quds, Shamkhani said, “The volume of fire, the range of missiles, and the tactical capability of Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad Movement to pass through various radar systems and the Iron Dome have invalidated the idea of the Zionist regime’s invincibility.”
Source: Iran Daily