Sputnik- Iraqi Shia militia may help in combatting Daesh terrorists in war-torn Syria after defeating the radical Islamist group in Iraq, Iraqi Vice President Nouri Maliki said.

MOSCOW (Sputnik)�� Hashd al-Shaabi, the Iraqi Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) Shia militia may provide their help in�fighting Daesh in�Syria after�defeating the terrorists at�home, Maliki said. "If we can be successful against�Daesh and liberate our soil, we can go into�Syria if our brothers there need help against�Daesh," Maliki told journalists as�quoted by�Anadolu news agency. The PMF is currently tasked with�clearing from�terrorists the city Tal Afar 40 miles west of�Mosul.

The PMF is an Iraqi state-sponsored umbrella organization composed of�40 predominantly Shiite militias with�reportedly up�to 100,000 members. It has been subjected to�criticism from�Saudi Arabia and Turkey, among�other Sunni states, for�fomenting sectarian discord.

The Iraqi government has rejected the accusations. Syria has been in�a state of�civil war since�2011, with�government forces fighting Syrian opposition groups striving to�overthrow the president. Damascus is also fighting numerous extremist and terrorist groups such as�the Jabhat Fatah al Sham and Daesh, both outlawed in�Russia. According to�the United Nations, at�least 300,000 Syrians have died since�the beginning of�the conflict.