Background Qawali was born to a
Sunni Kurdish family from
Tuz Khurmatu,
Saladin Governorate. He came from a poor background, and lived by a river which he would draw water from and transport with his tractor to other areas to earn an income. He was described as a calm individual, and reportedly held ties to
Mullah Krekar an Islamist cleric and founder of Ansar al-Islam. Qawali was also a member the
Kurdistan Democratic Party and a supporter of
Masoud Barzani as well as a volunteer of its armed branch Peshmerga, and carried out attacks with his supporters against Iraqi government forces and allied paramilitary groups by riding horses, motorcycles and 4-wheel drive vehicles and launching the attacks from the
Hamrin Mountains. Between 2015 and 2016 he participated in riots in his hometown
Tuz Khurmatu and allegedly burned down houses belonging to the
Shia Iraqi Turkmen.
Militant activity In April 2016 he took part in clashes against
Iraqi Security Forces, and Kurdish media outlets showed photos of him removing the flag of
Kata'ib Hezbollah afterwards. During the break out of
fighting between Iraq's government and Kurdish forces in October 2017, he attacked the
Popular Mobilization Forces headquarters in Tuz Khurmato after the arrival of the
Iraqi Army in the town. In December 2017, he reportedly established the White Flags, and led the group in firing mortars and rockets at Turkmen PMF positions in Tuz Khurmato which Iraqi security forces claim to have resulted in the death of two civilians and the injury of several others. In an interview with the
Saudi-based
Arab News, an associate of Qawali, a Peshmerga commander, said regarding him "Sheikh
Mujahid Assi is leading an armed group in Tuz Khurmatu as a part of the Kurdish popular resistance against the
Shiite terrorist militias", and attributed rocket attacks in the town to Qawali. He and the White Flags had also been accused of executing truck drivers on a road between
Baghdad and
Kirkuk, by Iraqi media. In response to the attacks attributed to Qawali, the mayor of Tuz Khurmato said regarding him and the group he reportedly leads, “These are extremist groups who were oppressed and prevented (by the Kurdish authorities) from working before,” adding “They are Kurdish militants (and are) joined by Daesh (ISIL) militants who fled the neighboring areas,” and “They are sleeper cells that were waiting for the right time and place to resume their activities.” On 28 December 2017, he was reportedly arrested by Iraqi security forces along with several other members of the
White Flags for firing rockets and mortars at
Turkmen Popular Mobilization Forces command centers in
Kirkuk. ==See also==