On September 8, the Popular Mobilisation Commission (PMC) issued a statement claiming that it had thwarted a Baath Party plot to disrupt the Arbaeen commemorations in Karbala and attempts to carry out future attacks across southern Iraq. The PMC said that its forces had conducted midnight raids to arrest alleged Baath Party members in the provinces of Karbala, Babil, Muthanna and Diwaniya. At least four people were arrested in Diwaniya, one of whom eventually died, leading to public outrage among pro-Tishreen activists and politicians.
Although the PMC did not reveal the names of those arrested, news reports suggest that the individuals included four prominent activists who took part in the Tishreen protests: Nasir al-Juburi, a law professor, Minim al-Abadi, a lawyer, Adil al-Bdairi, a local tribal chief, and Iqbal Dohan al-Garaawi, chief of the Marmadhi tribe in Diwaniya.
Garaawi was an open supporter of controversial Shia cleric Mahmoud al-Sarkhi, whose followers are widely regarded to have pro-Baath sympathies. His arrest was part of the PMC’s claim that these were anti-Baath raids. Garaawi was released on September 15 and transferred to hospital where he later died. A video shared online shows that his body was severely bruised, suggesting that he may have been tortured.
Noor Nafi and Sajad Salim, both members of parliament for the pro-Tishreen Imtidad party, called for an investigation into the torture claims, with Salim calling on PM al-Kadhimi to dismiss PMC chief Falih al-Fayadh and have him prosecuted for ‘breaking the law”. Salim said in a statement that the PMC does not have the authority to make such arrests, adding that the aim was to “intimidate activists and protesters”.
The timing of the arrests as well as the fact that four of the detainees are linked to the Tishreen protest movement has led to a public backlash, with suggestions that the Hashd raids were an early warning message to organisers in the south, given that protests are expected to resume in October on the third anniversary of Tishreen.