The commander Haji Jawad al-Talabwi fixed me with an unblinking stare and warned me that he was a hard man.
He told me I'd better not reveal the secrets of Asaib Ahl al-Haqq - Iraq's most powerful Shia Muslim fighting group - to foreign intelligence.
We'd just heard him laying down the law on the phone, issuing a warning to whoever was on the other end that suicide vests had been smuggled in. If the Sunnis helped Isis militants they would be killed, one by one if necessary.
Haji Jawad was about 5'8" (1.72m) in his boots and combat fatigues, and somewhere in middle age. He looked like the kind of man whose threats should be taken seriously.
We were in a building they had commandeered in Djail, a small and dusty town about 40 miles (65km) north of Baghdad.
Haji Jawad is a senior military figure in Asaib Ahl al-Haqq, or League of the Righteous. He seemed to glorify in his organisation's fearsome reputation. Isis, he said, knew the kind of men they were facing around Djail.
"We believe there's a divine promise that we'll win. Our enemies are filled with fear before they even see us. We've had phone calls from most of the villages held by militants, offering to surrender in exchange for their safety," he told me.
"This shows how terrified the militants are of us - it's because of our expertise in urban and guerrilla warfare, and the experience we gained from fighting against the Americans and the British."
Read more:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-28199741So it's eternal war. Because these bleep do not know the meaning of the word quit. It's admirable when it's not aimed at you.
