A convoy of refugees pass through a checkpoint on their way home. Yahoo/Reuters.
Iraqi officials and police officers are accusing a Shia militia group of looting and burning the Sunni town of al-Dour. Yahoo/Reuters. The militia, Kataib Hezbollah, denied the reports. The officials claimed that over 150 homes were destroyed by the group. Al-Dour was liberated by the Iraqi Army and Shia militias during the now stalled offensive to take back the city of Tikrit. In the wake of the offensive, Sunni Muslims have accused the Shia militia groups of extra-judicial killings and retribution for the fact that few Sunni Muslims fought against ISIS. In denying the attacks, Kataib Hezbollah explained that operations to disarm explosives placed by ISIS could have been mistaken for retaliation. Other Iraqi officials have claimed that no looting or destruction is going on.
My Comment:
Not sure what to think about this case. On the one hand, the excuse this Shia group used, that they were just disarming booby traps and explosives, does make sense. On the other, this in not the first time that Shia militias have been accused of razing Sunni towns. They have also been accused of killing prisoners and harassing and even killing Sunni and Christian civilians. Given the recent history of the Shia militias, I tend to think that the reports are real. Undoubtedly, there are a lot of booby traps and explosives in al-Dour, but I seriously doubt that 150 buildings in the town were booby trapped.
This was always the fear since the offensive to take back Tikrit began. Iraq's lack of a real army has made them very dependent on these Shia militias. And the Shia militias are not all that much better then ISIS. The best thing you can say about them is that they aren't cutting peoples heads off on video (at least not often) and aren't enslaving women to be used as sex slaves (so far). As the offensive in Tikrit stalls out and the various militia groups get frustrated, expect more of this sectarian violence to occur.
The actions of the Shia militias puts both the Iraqi government and her Western allies in a delicate and uncomfortable situation. Iraq pretty much has to use these militia units because their military is too fractured and damaged to conduct offensive operations on their own. But depending on these units is a liability. Not only does the United States have a huge problem with these Iranian backed militias in the first place, but when they commit atrocities it makes it impossible for the United States to support their operations. America doesn't want to be caught supporting people that aren't much better then ISIS but they also want the Iraqi government to win. It is a difficult situation all around, especially for the small number of Sunnis fighting for the Iraqi government. I wonder how those fighters will rationalize fighting for a government that is actively supporting groups that are attacking their people.
Yet again, this is another example of the deteriorating relations between Sunni and Shia. Well, deteriorating might not be the right word for it because it implies that the two groups weren't in open warfare for quite some time now. The entire conflict in Iraq and Syria, and to a lesser extent, Yemen as well, is a proxy war between Sunni Islam, led by the Gulf States, and Shia Islam, led by Iran. Neither side will fight each other openly for control over Islam, but they will let their proxies fight it out. ISIS isn't a proxy for the Gulf States, but other less extreme groups are. The conflict is having a terrible toll on civilians of both religions. It's telling that both Sunni and Shia Muslims are willing to put up with the extreme actions of both ISIS and the militias if it means they can feel safe. Like so many other conflicts in history people are supporting their side not because they are right but because they aren't the ones that are attacking their people.
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