Iraqi troops at the Iraqi-Syrian border
Iraqi troops at the Iraqi-Syrian borderReuters

The Iraqi government has been struggling for months to disband Iranian backed militias operating in its territory, some of which were targeted in alleged Israeli attacks earlier this month, Reuters reported.

Two months ago, Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi ordered all foreign militias to leave or be absorbed into the Iraqi military.

However, many militias still occupy territory in Iraq and continue to man checkpoints in regions across the country, especially in areas reclaimed from the ISIS terrorist organization.

Iraq's attempts to rein in the militias followed threats by the Trump Administration to impose sanctions if Iranian-backed forces continued to operate freely on Iraqi territory.

The continued activity of Shi'ite militias in Iraq has been a source of growing concern in Israel, which believes Iran is attempting to create a corridor under its military control that extends through Iraq, Syria, and Lebanon to the Mediterranean Sea.

Last week, Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu confirmed that Israel was working to thwart Iranian military consolidation in Iraq following the destruction of Iranian weapons depots in Iraq. However, he did not confirm that Israel had engaged in military activity.

The Israeli government has admitted to carrying out multiple airstrikes against Iranian and Iranian-backed forces in Syria to prevent an Iranian military consolidation in Syria.