An Iraqi Counter-Terrorism Service member stands guard during a security deployment.
Counter-Terrorism Service denies arresting PMF chief of staff member
BAGHDAD — The Counter-Terrorism Service denied on Monday that it had arrested a member of the Popular Mobilization Forces chief of staff in Baghdad, after Iraqi outlets reported the detention of a senior PMF figure.
It “denies the news circulated on some social media sites about the arrest of a member of the Popular Mobilization Forces chief of staff,” the service said, describing itself as a professional body working under judicial orders and with the approval of the Office of the Commander-in-Chief. It urged the public and media to rely on its official platforms.
The denial follows the service’s detention of Abbas al-Yaqoubi, the PMF’s intelligence director for Baghdad Belt Operations and an official linked to Harakat al-Nujaba, at his home in Dhi Qar on Aug. 17. He was transferred to the PMF General Directorate of Security, and the PMF said on Aug. 19 that the judiciary had dismissed all accusations and ordered his release.