Two Hashd al-Shaabi members detained in Karbala poster dispute

KARBALA, Iraq — Two members of Iraq's Popular Mobilization Forces (Hashd al-Shaabi) were detained on Friday after a dispute with local security forces over the hanging of a poster of former Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei on a central Karbala avenue, local authorities said. The incident began when the two Hashd members, assigned to the group's Logistics Support Directorate, began putting up the poster along Republic Street, according to security officials. Units of the Order Protection Force, under Iraq's Interior Ministry, objected because the avenue falls within their area of responsibility. Security officials said the objection was not directed at the poster or its subject, but at the lack of prior permission and coordination. The two members were detained after being told to stop the work, and necessary legal procedures were initiated. Sheikh Nazim al-Saidi, head of the executive council of the New Mount Lebanon Movement, said the poster hanging was a "personal act and did not reflect the local government's views. Separately, lawmaker Ahmed Shahid said parliament's Speaker's Office instructed the Security and Defense Committee to open legal proceedings against Major General Anwar al-Nasrawi over the posting of martyr posters in the city. Republic Street lies along the official route of Khamenei's funeral procession, which began on July 8 on Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis Avenue and continued to the holy shrines. Karbala's security and service agencies are enforcing strict coordination and signage rules in the city center and along visitor routes ahead of the upcoming Arbaeen pilgrimage.