Shiite Militias Win Bloody Battles in Iraq, Show No Mercy

By
MATT BRADLEY And
GHASSAN ADNAN
This was news for me Shiite militias helped win some of Iraq's recent victories against
Islamic State. Apparently these Shiite militia groups have been some of the most effective
weapons in fighting against ISIS. However their tactics are going against human rights. They
take no prisoners and are just as brutal with their captured ISIS prisoners as ISIS is with them.
One of the militias leaders made this statement We see them, we attack them, we get
the weapons from them, we talk to them, we get their confessions, and then we kill them, said
Mr. Zamili, he is currently 35 years old and ran five restaurants before he formed the Al Qaraa
in June.
Over the last few months there have been surges of people trying to join the Iraqi army
but they have had trouble absorbing the big influx of volunteers. When they have taken them in
sometimes they are only trained for a few days then sent to fight against ISIS. Shiite militias
like Al Qaraa have emerged as the most effective fighting force against Islamic State in Iraq,
helping the battered army break a two-month siege and humanitarian crisis in Amerli in August
and recaptured the strategically important oil-refinery town of Beiji in mid-November.
Some of the stories about theses fighters were interesting they said that at times during
fighting they would sleep in front of Iraqi Army vehicles to prevent them from retreating. They
claim that there is allot of corruption in the Iraqi Army, which the Iraqi government and US
government agrees with.

The reason they arent taking any prisoners is because they claim that they are just
released after being handed over to the government. So instead of handing them over they are
executing them now. Many of them boast about their executions of ISIS fighters.
This is starting to worry people because they think that these militia groups are becoming
another Islamic state. Their victories are being broadcast; the leaders of the militia and generals
of the army are standing together during these broad casts.
Should we be trusting in these Shiite militias? I dont think so, however I dont think the
Iraqi army has much of a choice. They have been very effective in winning some key battles.
Their brutality towards the ISIS fighters is definitely inhumane. However the Iraqi Army has
been suffering defeat after defeat. Largely because their soldiers are fleeing at the first sign of
danger, the militias say it is because they are only there for the pay check.
I think what the militias are doing as far as progress in the fighting is great, their brutality
needs to stop. But maybe what the military advisors should be doing is cleaning out the Iraqi
military and police force. The whole reason they started taking no prisoners was because they
were seeing them released. If they were to change this then I think that we could really be
making a big difference minus the inhumane treatment.