The US-led alliance forces have trained almost 16,000 Iraqi fighters and police officers. Hashemi estimated that number includes almost 4,400 Sunnis. On Dec. 17, the US Embassy in Baghdad issued a press release stating, “The training was focused on guerrilla wars, de-mining, dealing with improvised explosive devices, rescuing operations in the battlefield and other important military skills necessary for the Iraqi security forces in their fight against IS.”
Weighing in on the matter, the Iraqi National Forces Alliance stressed the importance of balance in the military and the Popular Mobilization Units. After a Nov. 11 meeting between Jabouri and former parliament Speaker Osama al-Nujaifi, both members of the Sunni alliance, the group announced its position: Abadi is being put to the test and should implement the commitments stipulated by the political agreement, such as making reforms in the state institutions, achieving balance, working on achieving security and enhancing living conditions for Iraqis.
Meanwhile, Sheikh Asham Subhan Khalaf al-Jubouri, who commands Sunni fighters in the Popular Mobilization Units' Salahuddin Brigade, told Al-Monitor, “Abadi’s approval of the official presence of Sunni fighters in the Popular Mobilization Units is positive.”
Jubouri, speaking by phone from the Hamrin Mountains region in northern Iraq, added, “The Iraqi government will be responsible for arming Sunni fighters and paying their salaries. We will be under the command of the Popular Mobilization Units’ officials under the current leadership. We will be directly linked to both the units’ leadership and the Iraqi army’s operations command."
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