Iraqi MPs campaign gathers 120+ signatures to advance PMF Law
More than 120 Iraqi lawmakers are pushing to advance the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) Authority Law by collecting signatures to place it on the agenda of upcoming parliamentary sessions, an Iraqi MP revealed on Wednesday.
Independent MP Hussein al-Saabri told Shafaq News that First Deputy Speaker Mohsen al-Mandalawi has affirmed the session will be held soon, noting strong parliamentary determination to pass the law during the current term.
'If it is not approved now, there will be no real opportunity to pass it in future terms,' al-Saabri stressed, adding that adopting the law would honor the sacrifices of PMF fighters who battled ISIS and ensure the group's transformation into a formal institution governed by binding legislation, similar to other security agencies.
Earlier, MP Ibtisam al-Hilali of the Shiite Coordination Framework confirmed that more than 100 lawmakers had already endorsed a request for an extraordinary session to vote on the PMF Authority Law.
The Coordination Framework is pressing for its passage, while Kurdish and Sunni blocs have resisted, linking their positions to unresolved disputes over budgets, oil revenues, and border crossings. US officials have voiced strong opposition, describing the bill as a tool to institutionalize Iran-aligned factions.
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