A prominent Iraqi militia has indicated it will give any heavy weapons it has to the military once Islamic State was defeated and rejected a proposed US congressional bill designating it a terrorist group.

Harakat Hezbollah al Nujaba, which has about 10,000 fighters, is one of the most important militias in Iraq. Though made up of Iraqis, it is loyal to Iran and is helping Tehran create a supply route through Iraq to Damascus.

The Nujaba fights under the umbrella of the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), a mostly Iranian-backed coalition of Shi’ite militias that played a role in combating Islamic State.

Disarming the PMF is seen as Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi’s most difficult test as Iraqi forces edge closer to declaring victory over the Sunni militants.

“The heavy weapons belong to the Iraqi government, not us. We are not rebels or agents of chaos and we do not want to be a state within a state,” Hashim al-Mouasawi, the group’s spokesman, said at a news conference.

He was responding to a Reuters question on whether his group would obey orders by Abadi, who as prime minister commands the military, to return heavy weaponry, reduce the number of fighters, or withdraw from Syria. He would not be drawn on the reduction of fighters or Syria.

Hashim al-Moussawi, the official spokesman for Harakat Hezbollah al Nujaba, speaks during a news conference in Baghdad, Iraq November 23, 2017. (Photo: Reuters)

“The PMF is under the command of the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces and naturally when the war is over and victory is declared, the final decision will be his,” Mouasawi said.

His comments broadly echoed those of Iraqi military spokesman Brigadier General Yahya Rasool.

“The tanks, armoured vehicles, and machine guns belong to the army and it is natural that after the battles are over they return to the army,” Rasool told Reuters in an interview.

Nujaba strongly objected to moves by Washington towards designating it a terrorist group. Nujaba blames the United States, without providing evidence, for the creation of IS.

Republican US Representative Ted Poe introduced a bill this month to the House of Representatives that would place Nujaba and another militia loyal to Iran on a list of terrorist groups and give President Donald Trump 90 days to impose sanctions on it once it passed.

Reuters