Iraqi militias in Syria are fighting without approval from Baghdad

Iraq’s Foreign Minister, Ibrahim Jaafari, has said that Iraqi militias fighting with pro-government forces in Syria against Islamist militants are doing so without permission from the Iraqi government.

The presence of Iraqi militias “does not represent the Iraqi government’s official stance,” Ibrahim al-Jaafari said in press statements at the ministry.

“The government had not given permission to anybody, and Iraq does not intervene with the affairs of other countries”, he stressed.

He, however, noted that “the Iraqi constitution does not prevent Iraqis from traveling anywhere”.

The Iraqi militias played an important role in the recent liberation of Aleppo.