A report by the British Middle East Eye website revealed that the Iraqi Asaib Ahl al-Haq faction had deviated from Iran's orders, which demanded that America's interests in Iraq not be targeted.
Last October, Iran asked its armed allies in Iraq not to attack American targets, to avoid the reactions of outgoing US President Donald Trump, who seeks to obstruct Iranian efforts to negotiate with his successor, Joe Biden, in order to return to the nuclear agreement concluded in 2015.
Despite strict Iranian directives, the gangs led by Qais Khazali launched attacks targeting the US embassy in Baghdad and diplomatic missions over the past three weeks, "without coordinating with any of the other factions or the Iranians," according to the commander of one of the armed factions.
This indicates that Asaib no longer operates under the command of the Iranians, and does not depend on the protection of Tehran or any of the other Iraqi factions, which raises many questions about the future of this faction.
According to security sources, two military convoys carrying equipment for the American forces were subjected to an IED attack, which resulted in material damage to the highway south of Baghdad.
These bombings were preceded by a missile attack in November targeting the US embassy in central Baghdad, in which a child was killed and 7 others were wounded, in addition to material damage to a number of private properties and government buildings.
An armed group calling itself the "Qassem al-Jabarin Brigade" claimed responsibility for the attack, which targeted the two military convoys, while another militia called "the owners of the cave" adopted the missile attack.
Although the finger of blame was pointing at Kataib Hezbollah, the most influential militia, the leaders of 4 armed factions, including Asaib, denied the involvement of Kataib Hezbollah in these attacks and insisted instead that Asaib carried out the attacks, putting an end to that. For the armistice that the militias entered into in October with the United States.
According to a prominent leader in Asaib - on condition of anonymity - the truce was conditional on scheduling the exit of US forces from Iraq within one month, but the Americans did not fulfill this condition and did nothing to prove their intention to leave, indicating that Washington had failed to develop any plans. A complete withdrawal from Iraq means that his faction no longer needs to abide by the ceasefire.
Qais Khazali, Secretary General of Asaib Ahl al-Haq (Al-Jazeera)
Sudden rebellion.
Asaib Ahl al-Haq is an armed faction that split in 2006 from the Mahdi Army, the former military wing of the Sadrist movement led by Muqtada al-Sadr.
Initially, it attracted fighters with experience and combat skills, and with its participation with Kataib Hezbollah, it carried out dozens of attacks against American forces between 2006 and 2008.
The faction is part of the Popular Mobilization Forces, which was formed in 2014 to confront ISIS.
According to Middle East Eye, Asaib was from the beginning supported by Iran, and until last month it was one of the most important and strongest Iranian arms in Iraq.
For this reason, its disobedience to Iran is a "surprise" for the Shiite political and armed forces.
Although Iran's response is not clear, recent attacks, carried out by small groups linked to Asa'ib, have stirred major rifts with Kataib Hezbollah, the traditional partner for more than a decade of Asaib Ahl al-Haq.
According to a prominent Iraqi politician close to Iran, Asaib Ahl al-Haq is one of the most prominent Iraqi factions that have expressed their dissatisfaction with the Iranian directives.
Its leaders have previously stated, in a meeting with leaders of other Shiite factions, that "the situation in Iraq is unique and that they are not committed to the Iranian viewpoint and will not submit to the Iranian will."
This politician added that Al-Asaib seeks to reproduce its media and political discourse, and to perpetuate the idea of its national affiliation and non-affiliation with Iran.
The new approach of Asaib Ahl al-Haq relates to preparing for the upcoming parliamentary elections and competing for the leadership of armed resistance factions in Iraq.
The report concluded that it is not expected at the present time that a conflict will arise between the Asa'ib and the Brigades, unless Asaib insists on continuing to follow a new approach, which may mean that Iran may investigate it and leave it alone in the face of the Americans and the Iraqi government.