Hadi al-Amiri

As a young man, Hadi al-Ameri was part of the (armed) struggle against the Saddam Hussein regime. During the Iran-Iraq war, he took refuge in Iran and stayed there until the fall of Saddam Hussein. There he participated in the founding of the Badr Organization|Badr Brigade, an armed wing of the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq, a Shiite political party which fought the Iraqi regime during the Iran–Iraq War of 1980–1988.{{cite news|url=http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2013/09/30/130930fa_fact_filkins?currentPage=all|title=The Shadow Commander|author=Dexter Filkins|first=Dexter|date=30 September 2013|magazine=The New Yorker|access-date=27 September 2013}}

Amiri has denied claims that he has overseen flights passing through Iraqi airspace from Iran to Syria containing shipments of weapons to help the Syrian Government in the Syrian Civil War. However, he has proclaimed his affection for Qasem Soleimani, the late commander of Quds Force, a division of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, who was believed to have been playing an instrumental part in supporting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in the conflict.

He was the commander of Iraqi forces in the operation to liberate Jurf Al Sakhar during 2014 Iraqi conflict.{{Cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/iraqi-forces-press-to-secure-shiite-south-ahead-of-religious-festival/2014/10/25/0b6ac5f0-6e1e-47f4-ab8d-a942c3606506_story.html |title=Iraqi forces press to secure Shiite south before religious observances believed to be target of Islamic State |last1=Morris |first1=Loveday |last2=Salim |first2=Mustafa |date=25 October 2014|newspaper=The Washington Post|access-date=2016-11-04}} As a commander in Popular Mobilization Forces, he has been active in the operations against ISIL. He has been described as "perhaps the most powerful and pro-Iranian" leader in the Popular Mobilization Forces and often met Brett H. McGurk, President Donald J. Trump's US Special Presidential Envoy for the Global Coalition to Counter ISIL.{{cite news|title=As Islamic State withers, the alliance against it is fraying|url=https://www.economist.com/news/middle-east-and-africa/21727927-america-battling-iran-influence-territories-abandoned|access-date=3 September 2017|newspaper=The Economist|date=31 August 2017}} He is fluent in Persian.{{cite news|title=America and Iran are jostling for influence over Iraq|url=https://www.economist.com/news/middle-east-and-africa/21720612-no-one-knows-what-donald-trump-wants-america-and-iran-are-jostling|access-date=21 April 2017|newspaper=The Economist|date=12 April 2017}}

In 2011, he accompanied the Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki on a visit to the White House during Barack Obama's presidency, in his capacity as Secretary of Transportation and also as a foe of (former Iraqi president) Saddam Hussein.{{cite web|url=https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2020/jan/2/hadi-al-amiri-leader-us-embassy-siege-iraq-was-gue/|title=Leader of U.S. Embassy siege in Iraq was guest of Obama at White House|website=The Washington Times|date=2 January 2020}}{{cite web|url=http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2020/01/03/US-embassy-siege-leader-was-guest-at-White-House-during-Obama-presidency.html|title=US embassy siege leader was guest at White House during Obama presidency|publisher=Al Arabiya English|date=2020-01-03|access-date=2020-01-03|archive-date=2020-01-04|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200104125555/http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2020/01/03/US-embassy-siege-leader-was-guest-at-White-House-during-Obama-presidency.html|url-status=dead}}

On 31 December 2019, along with Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, Qais Khazali, and Falih Al-Fayyadh, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo claimed him to be a leader of the attack on the United States embassy in Baghdad. In the aftermath of the 2020 Baghdad International Airport airstrike which resulted in the deaths of Qasem Soleimani and Muhandis, Amiri was seen as a candidate to replace Muhandis as a leader of the Popular Mobilization Forces,{{cite web|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-iraq-security-airstrike/tens-of-thousands-march-in-baghdad-to-mourn-soleimani-others-killed-in-us-air-strike-idUSKBN1Z3065 |title=Large crowds mourn Iranian general, others killed in U.S. air strike |publisher=Reuters |date=2020-01-03 |access-date=2020-01-04 |first1=Ahmed |last1=Aboulenein |first2=Maha |last2=El Dahan |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200104181251/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-iraq-security-airstrike/tens-of-thousands-march-in-baghdad-to-mourn-soleimani-others-killed-in-us-air-strike-idUSKBN1Z3065 |url-status=live |archive-date=2020-01-04}} an Iraqi coalition of militias which fought against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorist group.

Amiri dismissed the 2021 Iraqi parliamentary election as "fabricated".{{Cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/iraqi-pro-iranian-politician-amiri-rejects-election-results-fabricated-tv-2021-10-12/|title=Iraqi pro-Iranian politician Amiri rejects election results as fabricated - TV|newspaper=Reuters |date=October 12, 2021|via=www.reuters.com}}

{{Reflist}}

{{Popular Mobilization Forces}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Amiri, Hadi}}

Category:Badr Brigade members

Category:Members of the Council of Representatives of Iraq

Category:Living people

Category:Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq politicians

Category:Transport ministers of Iraq

Category:1954 births

Category:People from Diyala Province

Category:People of the 1991 Iraqi uprisings

Category:People of the War in Iraq (2013–2017)