Supreme Leader
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned the Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi
on Tuesday against any measures that could weaken the Tehran-backed
Shi'ite paramilitary groups, saying such actions would endanger
Baghdad's stability.
At
a meeting in Tehran, Ayatollah Khamenei said the Shi'ite militias were Iraq's
main forces pushing back Sunni jihadist groups, and Baghdad should not
trust the United States in the fight against the Islamic State, Iranian
state media reported.
The
Shi'ite militias, known as Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) helped
Baghdad defend the country against the Islamic State militant group when
Iraqi military and police divisions deserted en masse in 2014.
