Four Baghdad police officers removed after US flag trampled at parade

BAGHDAD — The commander-in-chief’s office has removed four Baghdad police officers from their posts and ordered a board of inquiry into them over the trampling of a U.S. flag at a Sovereignty Day parade, an office document shows.

The officers neglected their security duties and allowed members of the Popular Mobilization Forces to insult the U.S. flag during the parade, which harms Iraq’s international relations, the document said. The office’s director, Abdul Amir al-Shammari, signed the order. Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi is commander-in-chief of the armed forces.

Those removed are Brig. Gen. Dawood Salman Dawood, commander of the Second Security Zone; Brig. Gen. Riyadh Jizan Rasan Salloum, an officer at the headquarters of the Baghdad Rusafa Police Command, which covers the city east of the Tigris; Col. Zulfiqar Ouda Kitab, commander of the 5th Baghdad Rusafa Emergency Regiment; and Lt. Col. Mustafa Salih Mahdi, the regiment’s intelligence officer.

The office also ordered Rusafa police to step up monitoring and keep a stronger presence on the ground during protests, celebrations and other events.

Zaidi ordered an inquiry and legal action early this month after U.S. Rep. Joe Wilson posted images on X that he said showed PMF members desecrating the flag at events marking the end of the U.S.-led coalition’s mission. Sabah al-Numan, spokesperson for the commander-in-chief, announced on Oct. 4 that those involved had been arrested, without saying how many or who they were. Harakat al-Nujaba, an Iran-aligned faction, demanded their release.

The coalition’s mission against the Islamic State group ended Sept. 30, and the last U.S. and coalition forces left Erbil Air Base that day. The PMF was set up in 2014 to fight Isis and brought into the state security structure by law in 2016. Some of its factions are closely tied to Iran.