Iraq and Iran are reportedly ramping up efforts to train hundreds of fighters for pro-Iranian militias, particularly the Hezbollah Brigades in Iraq. This development, as reported by the Lebanese newspaper Al-Akhbar, suggests preparations for a potential regional conflict, especially in light of recent clashes between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon.

According to a report published Friday in Al-Akhbar, hundreds of fighters are being trained in Iraq to join pro-Iranian militias, with a focus on the Hezbollah Brigades in Iraq.

Sources told the newspaper that the training is taking place both within Iraq and outside its borders, under the supervision of Iranian experts. They confirmed that these exercises are being conducted against the backdrop of a potential all-out war in the region, especially following the recent escalation between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon.

The sources noted that while training fighters from Iraqi factions is not new, there has been an increased focus on this effort since the Oct. 7 Hamas attack. The report states that advanced weapons, rockets, and drones have arrived in Iraq from Iran and Russia, necessitating specialized training for the fighters.

The newspaper, known for its pro-Iranian stance, further claimed, that there are more than ten training camps in various Iraqi cities, working on two missions: the first is training regular fighters, and the second is training individuals under the supervision of military experts from Iran. These individuals are trained to the level of Iranian Revolutionary Guards or Hezbollah members.

According to the sources, there are groups currently receiving training in Iran, and they are about to complete their training and return to Iraq. These groups include members of Hashd al-Shaabi, Hezbollah Brigades in Iraq, and the Al-Nujaba Movement all pro-Iranian militias. The training is not only military but also prepares individuals capable of conducting recruitment from an ideological and jihadist perspective.

Firas Al-Yasser, a member of the political bureau of the Al-Nujaba Movement, told Al-Akhbar, "The resistance continues to prepare, as there are calculations that the war might expand. Therefore, there are many preparations currently underway. There is training of combat forces in military centers." He added that the militias have their own calculations. Al-Yasser mentioned that "there are American bases scattered in the region, and if aggression begins against Lebanon, I expect there will be strategic attacks against these bases."

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Telegram channels affiliated with Iran-backed militias in Iraq published posters threatening Israeli interests last week, according to the Middle East Media Research Institute's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor.

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On April 14, Sabreen News, a Telegram channel linked to Iraqi Shiite paramilitary group Asa'ib Ahl Al-Haq, published a poster celebrating the recent attack on an Israeli-owned cargo ship off the coast of the United Arab Emirates. The MV Hyperion Ray suffered minor damage after it was struck near the Emirate of Fujairah.

The poster showed the vessel sinking after being cut in two by "Zulfiqar," the famed sword of Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib, a cousin, son-in-law, and companion of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, a common motif among Shiites, according to JTTM.

The text on the poster read: "Ask your grandfather about Thoalfkar [i.e., Zulfiqar] swords" in an apparent reference to the Battle of Khaybar of 628 C.E., in which Bin Talib fought the Jews.

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On April 13, the day of the attack on the Israeli vessel, another pro-Iran Telegram channel, Jihad Brothers Electronic Team, celebrated the attack and published a poster of a missile flying past a boat with the text: "What lies ahead is graver."

Also on April 13, a Telegram channel affiliated with the Iraq-based Hezbollah Brigades claimed the group had attacked an intelligence and operations center "run by the Israeli Mossad" in northern Iraq and that several Israeli soldiers had been killed or wounded. The Kurdistan Regional Government, however, rejected reports a Mossad base had been attacked in northern Iraq.

This article was first published by i24NEWS.

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The trucks were traveling from Basra when they were targeted between Diwaniya and Samawah. Gunmen forced the drivers to exit the vehicles and then set the vehicles on fire, according to the report.

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Sources in the Iraqi Interior Ministry told Al-Araby Al-Jadeed that, while it's still too early to say who was behind the attack, it seems to have been carried out by one of the pro-Iranian militias based in the country, rather than the Islamic State group.

According to Lebanon's Hezbollah-affiliated Al Mayadeen TV, US fighter jets could be heard in the vicinity of the reported convoy attack and over Baghdad.

Photos shared on social media reportedly from the scene, showed the trucks engulfed in flames. There were no reports of American casualties in the incident.

Earlier Saturday, unidentified warplanes carried out an airstrike on a convoy that killed 35 pro-Iranian militiamen in the Deir ez-Zor province in eastern Syria, Turkey's Anadolu news agency reported.

The attack occurred in the Albukamal region along the Iraqi border, where Iran has built its sprawling Imam Ali base to safeguard the border crossing between Syria and Iraq.

According to the report, two high-ranking militia commanders were killed in the strike.

In the past, both Israeli and American air forces have attacked Iranian targets in the area.

Social media reports in Syria identified the targeted militias as Kata'ib Hezbollah, or Hezbollah Brigades, an Iraqi Shiite paramilitary group which is part of the Popular Mobilization Forces, and Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba, an Iraqi Shiite paramilitary group that is especially active in Syria. Both militias are considered Iranian proxies.

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Iran is waging a war of attrition with the United States that could affect Israel

Brig. Gen. (res.) Yossi Kuperwasser, the former head of the IDF Intelligence Directorate's Research Division and now a senior scholar at the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs, says Iran is trying to sway the United States via attrition to lift economic sanctions.

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"Iran is working by way of these militias to persuade the Americans that it's not worth it for them to continue with economic sanctions. In Iran there are elements that want to take tougher action and there are moderate elements, and the bottom line is that Iran has activated these militias, which are lesser trained, quasi-military forces. Now it's possible that Iran will ultimately take things even further and attack the US in a more painful manner. In other words, it will harm American civilians; although it appears that for now [Ayatollah Ali] Khamenei doesn't want this. On the other hand, it could be that in order to hurt the Americans, the Iranians will suddenly look to us. Until now, in Syria they haven't sustained too many casualties in their fight with us, and it is very convenient for them to attack us as a message to the United States."

Kuperwasser added: "Already today, pretty close to the border with Israel, there are multi-national militias comprised of Shiites that receive money from Iran. It's not a lot of money because in the Middle East you get paid like you're in the Middle East, not like in a Western army. Hence Iran is spending several billions on militias which consist of tens of thousands of soldiers. From this perspective, it benefits Iran to activate these forces. We must also note that Iran, from its view, is fighting for its life. The regime feels threatened, ergo the extremely violent suppression of protests in Iran itself and in Iraq. In Lebanon, too, the Iranians would like to use live fire to kill as many protesters as possible, but the rules of the game [there] are different. In any case, we shouldn't be surprised if we are also attacked within the framework of Iran's fight against the US."

If Iran wants, these militias will also threaten Israel

According to Maj. Gen. (res.) Amos Gilad, these Shiite militias are essentially a military force with multiple capabilities, even though they are not part of the Iranian army.

"Iran uses a system of subcontractors, who carry out terroristic and military acts on its behalf in places where Iran isn't comfortable acting directly, due to fears over responses that would harm Iran itself. These are military units in every way, albeit weaker than a regular army. Let's not misconstrue though, their job is to carry out terrorist acts. For example, the people firing from Yemen at Saudi Arabia are not the Iranians themselves, rather members of a militia led and inspired by Iran. Therefore, also as far as Israel is concerned, these militias must be treated with the utmost seriousness, regardless of the framework they are operating under."

Gilad explains that "if Iran wants to harm us, it would be easier to order these militias to fire precision missiles at us. Now, the recent American attack on these forces was because an American defense contractor was killed in Iraq. This is why the Americans attacked that specific force [the Hezbollah Brigades in Iraq]. Beyond that, it's hard to believe the US will attack Iran directly. This is mainly because the Americans have already said and reiterated that they won't attack Iran militarily; rather only use economic sanctions and diplomatic isolation – to which they are sticking to for the time being."

The more Iran funds these forces, the more dangerous they become

Sima Shine, currently a senior research fellow at the Institute for National Security Studies and a former head of the Mossad's Research and Evaluation Division, believes that the Iranian militias in Iraq represent a clear and present danger for Israel.

"This is not a regular Iranian military force. The entire advantage of such a force is that its actions can be denied, such that Iran itself isn't directly responsible. Therefore they are not an actual military force. But we cannot be mistaken and think [these militias] are weak. The Iranians train them all the time, and the more training and experience these fighters get the greater the threat they pose."

Shine stresses that from the perspective of these militias' capabilities, "Iran can certainly decide to give them precision weapons, including missiles, and then if it gives the order, these missiles will also be turned on us. This danger most definitely needs to be taken into account. Another way for Iran to use these militias against us is to deploy them in very large numbers to Syria, from where they will move toward the Israeli border on the Golan Heights to more easily act against Israel. This is a very realistic scenario which requires tracking."

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The announcement in Baghdad came a day after US Defense Secretary Mark Esper said Washington had carried out military strikes targeting the Iranian-backed Iraqi militia blamed for a rocket attack that killed an American contractor in Iraq last week.

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US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the strikes send the message that the US will not tolerate actions by Iran that jeopardize American lives.

The US military said "precision defensive strikes" were conducted against five sites of Kata'ib Hezbollah, or Hezbollah Brigades in Iraq and Syria.

"Our battle with America and its mercenaries is now open to all possibilities," Kata'ib Hezbollah said in a statement around midnight Sunday. "We have no alternative today other than confrontation and there is nothing that will prevent us from responding to this crime."

The US blames the militia for a rocket barrage Friday that killed a US defense contractor at a military compound near Kirkuk, in northern Iraq. Officials said as many as 30 rockets were fired in that attack.

Iraq's Hezbollah Brigades, a separate force from the Lebanese terrorist group Hezbollah, operates under the umbrella of the state-sanctioned militias known collectively as the Popular Mobilization Forces. Many of them are supported by Iran.

The Popular Mobilization Forces said Sunday that the US strikes killed at least 19 of Kata'ib Hezbollah's members. But Kata'ib Hezbollah spokesman Mohammed Mohieh told The Associated Press on Monday that the death toll rose to 25. At least 51 militiamen were wounded and some of them were in serious condition, he said, adding that the militia group's commanders would decide on the retaliation.

In Tehran, foreign ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi condemned the US strikes against Kata'ib Hezbollah as an "obvious case of terrorism" and accused Washington of ignoring Iraq's sovereignty.

Lebanon's Iran-backed Hezbollah also blasted the "brutal American aggression," saying those who took the decision to carry out the attack "will soon discover how stupid this criminal decision was."

Kata'ib Hezbollah is led by Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, one of Iraq's most powerful men. He once battled US troops and is now the deputy head of the Popular Mobilization Forces. In 2009, the State Department linked him to the elite Quds Force of Iran's Revolutionary Guards, designated a foreign terrorist organization by President Donald Trump earlier this year.

The US maintains some 5,000 troops in Iraq, at the invitation of the Iraqi government to assist and train in the fight against the Islamic State group.

The attack that killed the American contractor and US counter-strikes come as months of political turmoil roil Iraq. About 500 people have died in anti-government protests, most of them demonstrators killed by Iraqi security forces.

The mass uprisings prompted the resignation last month of Prime Minister Adil Abdul-Mahdi, who remains in a caretaker capacity.

In a statement, Abdul-Mahdi said Esper had called him about a half-hour before the US strikes on Sunday to tell him of US intentions to hit bases of the militia suspected of being behind Friday's rocket attack. Abdul-Mahdi said he asked Esper to call off the US plan.

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