AFP, Washington :The Pentagon said on Tuesday that there are some Shiite fighters at an Iraqi military base where Washington just sent 450 reinforcements, but they were not working with US forces, underscoring concerns over links with the sectarian fighters.Pentagon spokesman Colonel Steve Warren said that while there is a “small group” of Shiite fighters at the Taqaddum base, there numbered only in the lower double digits, did not form full units and did not interact with US forces. Taqaddum is a key area in the fight to retake the city of Ramadi and the Sunni province of Al-Anbar from the Islamic State group.Shiite and Kurdish fighters have been critical in bolstering a weakened Iraqi military in efforts to fight Islamic State. But the United States is hesitant to see Shiite militias involved in its efforts to battle IS, despite their battle readiness. Many of the forces are backed by US-rival Iran and the military has not forgotten intense fighting with Shiite groups after the 2003 American invasion of Iraq.The US and international observers also fret that such militias could spark sectarian fighting during campaigns.In its annual report on terrorism released on Friday, the US said Tehran continues to “sponsor terrorist groups around the world.”Warren said the Shiite fighters are coordinating with Iraq government forces at the strategic base, and that the US made it a condition of troop deployment to the airbase that Shiite militia units be withdrawn.”There were Shia militias units on Taqaddum at one point,” Warren added. But “one of the conditions for our arrival there was that these units move off Taqaddum airbase”.IS launched a brutal offensive last June that overran large areas north and west of Baghdad.Meanwhile, Iraq’s most powerful Shi’ite force said it is relying more heavily on elite units who fought in Syria in the battle against Islamic State for control of a critical Iraqi refinery and is now well placed to counter the militants’ guerrilla warfare.Iraq’s biggest refinery complex near the town of Baiji north of Baghdad has changed hands several times over many months of fighting and is one of the main fronts in Iraq’s bid to retake the third of its territory held by the Sunni insurgents.Haji Jawad al-Talabawi, a military commander and spokesman for the Asaib Ahl al-Haq militia, said it is now more effective in street combat. and he is hopeful that the tide will turn in favor of government troops and their Shi’ite militia allies.”We are using our special forces who were trained fighting in Syria (against Islamic State). That has enabled us to fight street-to-street and house-to-house,” he told Reuters in a telephone interview. “We are depending on a new strategy.”bid to retake the third of its territory held by the Sunni insurgents.Haji Jawad al-Talabawi, a military commander and spokesman for the Asaib Ahl al-Haq militia, said it is now more effective in street combat and he is hopeful that the tide will turn in favor of government troops and their Shi’ite militia allies.”We are using our special forces who were trained fighting in Syria (against Islamic State). That has enabled us to fight street-to-street and house-to-house,” he told Reuters in a telephone interview. “We are depending on a new strategy.”
