| General Military Council for Iraqi Revolutionaries | |
|---|---|
| المجلس العسكري العام لثوار العراق | |
  Official logo (top) and flag (bottom) of General Military Council for Iraqi Revolutionaries | |
| Dates of operation | 15 January 2014 – 2 December 2014[1] |
| Active regions | Iraq |
| Ideology | Iraqi nationalism Ba'athism Saddamism |
| Size | 75,000[2] |
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TheGeneral Military Council for Iraqi Revolutionaries (Arabic:المجلس العسكري العام لثوار العراقal-Majlis al-‘Askari al-‘Āmm li-Thuwwār al-‘Irāq;GMCIR),[3] was aBa'athist militant group inIraq headed bySaddam Hussein-era military and political leaders.[4] It was described byAl Jazeera as "one of the main groups" in theIraqi insurgency.[5]
GMCIR began its insurgency against the Iraqi government in January 2014, during theWar in Iraq (2013-17), as a unifying command for the formerSunniArab Spring protesters thatNouri al-Maliki's government had cracked down upon since 2012.[6] The figures associated with the GMCIR have stated that it has a central command and "the footprints of a professional army",[4] that it follows theGeneva Convention protocol rules,[7] as well as claiming to be non-sectarian and seeking a "democratic solution" to the Iraqi crisis.[5] The GMCIR has announced its opposition to Iranian influence in Iraq and the role theIRGC have played with Iraqi security forces.[8]
TheCarnegie Endowment for International Peace characterized the GMCIR as anArab Socialist Ba'ath Party – Iraq Regionfront group.[3]
By the end of 2014 the group was eclipsed by ISIL and had become defunct.[9]
The MCIR has a presence inAl Anbar Governorate (especiallyRamadi andFallujah),Saladin,Baghdad,Abu Ghraib,Mosul, andDiyala.[5] After seizing and capturingMosul, the MCIR entered it along with many opposition armed forces, including ISIL. They installed a former officer in theIraqi Army, Major General Azhar al-Ubaidi, with the approval of the other forces that entered Mosul, as governor.[10] A municipal worker described MCIR as administering the management of the city better than the Iraqi government, which was "providing electricity for only 2 or 3 hours a day," and was "corrupt."[11]
After theIraqi Parliament approved the government of the new PMHaider al-Abadi on 8 September 2014, the MCIR stated on 9 September "Our people are being deceived, misled, ignored and mocked, while the political process stayed on the same faces."[12] They commented in the statement on the installation ofNouri al-Maliki as a vice-president ofFuad Masum, saying "Instead of prosecuting al-Maliki for his crimes and hisexplosive barrels that are being thrown on the heads of innocent people, the political leaders of Iraq honored him by making him vice-president of the republic of murder and destruction."[13]
The GMIR has close links with theAssociation of Muslim Scholars, a group that considers the current Iraqi government as illegitimate due to being the result of theUnited States occupation.[4]
The MCIR's relationship with theIslamic State in Iraq and the Levant is one of cooperation, yet there are significant differences between the two. Despite taking part in the same June 2014 offensive, which wrested control of much of Northern Iraq from Baghdad, MCIR spokesman and former General Muzhir al Qaisi has criticized ISIL and their strict implementation of Shari'a law, describing members of ISIL as "barbarians."[7] He also claimed that the MCIR was stronger than ISIL.[7]
An unnamed source for the MCIR stated: "We plan to avoid them [ISIS] until we are settled and operations are finished; then we will kick them out."[14]
The presence of MCIR fighters on the ground has been noted by observers, who argued that United States airstrikes would "inflame" the situation in Iraq by not taking into account the diversity of the opposition to the al-Maliki regime.[15]
The MCIR reportedly has atruce agreement with theKurdistan Region not to targetKurdish territory, in return for the Regional Government's non-interference in the Council creating an autonomous area outside of the control of the current Iraqi government.[14]
Iraqi TV coverage of early 2014 events within the country was split along sectarian, religious lines. Channels loyal to Prime Minister Nouri Maliki, including the government's ownal-Iraqiya TV, are rallying Iraqis to volunteer and fight to restore order and remove "terrorists". Meanwhile, Sunni channels present the latest advances by the insurgents as part of an uprising against what they call "al-Maliki's army."[16]
According to western media,Al-Rafidain TV is particularly supportive of the cause of the "revolutionaries" and "mujahideen" who it says are fighting to liberate the country.[16]
The councils include tribal leaders and former insurgent leaders but are headed by former senior army officers—among the thousands of Sunni generals cast aside when the United States disbanded the Iraqi army after the toppling of Saddam Hussein in 2003..."We consider the Iraqi government illegitimate because it is a result of [the U.S.] occupation," said Dari, head of the association's information office
The Kurds ... are in touch with other elements, including tribal leaders and commanders of the Military Councils of Iraqi Revolutionaries (MCIR), which includes many experienced former Iraqi army officers. The Kurds have been given assurances from the latter that they will not encroach on the borders of the KRG autonomous region, according to an MCIR spokesman... The Kurdish leadership's message to the MCIR conversely was thatErbil would not be against the Sunnis taking the road of establishing their own autonomous area, following the lead of Kurdistan itself.
Bombing the insurgents would kill both ISIS and MCIR fighters as well as many Sunni civilians. It would not fix the underlying issues, and potentially inflame them further.
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