At a Glance

• Retaliation decision remains unchanged
• Response postponed after political requests
• Al-Walai calls retaliation a national duty
• U.S. offers $10 million for information

Information obtained by Channel8 indicates that Abu Ala al-Walai, Secretary-General of Kataib Sayyid al-Shuhada, says the Islamic Resistance in Iraq has postponed, but not abandoned, its planned response to recent U.S.-Saudi airstrikes, describing retaliation as a doctrinal and national duty.

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Key Statements and Focus Area

• Al-Walai said the decision to respond remains unchanged, but its timing has been adjusted.
• The response was reportedly postponed following requests from Hadi al-Amiri and other Coordination Framework leaders.
• Al-Walai described retaliation as an obligation from which the Islamic Resistance would not retreat.
• The group said national sovereignty cannot be protected through timid official declarations and called for action against what it described as violations.

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Hashim Finyan Rahim al-Saraji, widely known as Abu Ala al-Walai, said Saturday that the Islamic Resistance in Iraq has only changed the timing of its planned response to recent U.S.-Saudi airstrikes.

He said the decision to retaliate remains in place and described it as a doctrinal and national duty.

Al-Walai also indicated that the scale and method of any response would remain subject to the group's decision, without providing specific operational details.

According to Al-Walai's statement, the response initially expected on Friday was postponed following requests from Hadi al-Amiri and other leaders within the Coordination Framework.

He said the postponement did not represent a change in the group's position and that no compromises had been made regarding its stated decision to respond.

The Islamic Resistance also said that Iraq's sovereignty should not be defended through what it described as timid official declarations, but through measures it considers capable of protecting national sovereignty.

Al-Walai's statement follows the airstrikes carried out on July 29, which he and allied groups have attributed to the United States and Saudi Arabia.

According to the information provided, U.S. and Saudi aircraft targeted Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) bases across five Iraqi governorates, resulting in more than 50 casualties.

The Islamic Resistance has linked its planned response to the deaths of PMF personnel during the strikes.

Abu Ala al-Walai is among the prominent leaders of the Islamic Resistance in Iraq and is subject to a $10 million U.S. reward for information leading to his capture.

Washington accuses him of organizing attacks against U.S. military installations and diplomatic personnel in Iraq and Syria.

FYI

The latest statement comes amid heightened tensions over the presence and activities of armed groups in Iraq and the government's efforts to ensure that weapons remain under state authority. Iraqi political leaders have repeatedly faced pressure to prevent the country from becoming a theater for regional confrontation, while armed factions have continued to issue statements concerning foreign military operations and Iraq's sovereignty.

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