The law granted the People’s Mobilization Forces (PMF), locally known as Al Hashd Al Shaabi, an official status after it's incorporation into the state's armed forces. Despite that, the state-sanctioned umbrella force still maintains it independence from the state army.
In his sermon, Al Karbalai called on Iraqis, able to take up arms, to join Iraq's official armed forces in defeating ISIS. The call which many interpreted as a fatwa, sanctioned the mobilization of thousands, in the name of a “defensive jihad”.