Tribal Mobilization

Tribal Mobilization, also referred to as Tribal Fighters, is an Iraqi group composed of Sunni tribesmen who emerged to combat the Islamic State (IS). It is important to distinguish this group from another force sometimes called Tribal Mobilization, formerly known as the National Mobilization and currently Nineveh Guard, which is associated with the political figure Atheel al-Nujaifi.

In 2017, a public statement by Thamer Al-Tamimi, Deputy Chief of the Sunni Tribal Mobilization, highlighted a sense of disillusionment among Sunni leaders in Iraq. Al-Tamimi, interviewed by Al-Hadath TV, expressed a belief that relying on support from Arab states would not be beneficial to Iraqi Sunnis. He claimed some of these states were intrumentalizing Iraqi Sunnis in their regional competition with Iran. Al-Tamimi further asserted that the Tribal Mobilization had sought aid from Gulf countries to combat IS, but according to his account, these requests were not acknowledged.

US bombing allegations
In October 2016, Iraqi officials announced the killing of 21 Tribal Mobilization Forces during a US bombing south of Mosul.