“…an extension of the former national Iraqi army and includes all the factions of the Iraqi people such as Sunnis, Shiites, Arabs, Kurds, Turkmen as well as Christians, Yazdis and Sabeans who want to liberate Iraq and relieve it from subordination.” It added: “We don’t have any connection or coordination with any group … which calls for dividing Iraq and its people on ethnic and sectarian basis.”
If sincere, this statement is at odds not only with the principles of the Islamic State, but also with the policies of Iran in the region, which have advanced Shiite interests to the exclusion of all others.
