Eerie scenes are on display in the ‘Green Zone’ in central Baghdad, where government headquarters and diplomatic missions are based. Iraqi special forces are out in full force. Soldiers sit on tanks and armored vehicles, reminding Baghdadis of the state of the capital when it was occupied by US forces in April 2003.

These scenes have dominated the area after security forces arrested military figure Qasim Muslih over a litany of alleged offenses on May 26. Serving as the Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) security chief in Anbar governorate, Muslih is the most powerful commander of the umbrella force to have been detained so far..