SALADIN, Iraq 

A Shia militia backed by a leading Iraqi cleric has announced its withdrawal from anti-Daesh military operations in Tikrit in protest against "intervention of U.S.-led coalition" in Iraq.

Saraya al-Salam, or the al-Salam brigades, of prominent Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr announced in a statement Thursday that it was withdrawing from Tirkit’s military operations against Daesh in protest against the “conqueror” U.S. forces. The militia accused the international coalition of providing “protection” to Daesh and blamed the U.S. for being the “reason of wars” in Iraq.

Al-Sadr established the al-Salam militant group in June 2014 on the pretext of providing protection to Islamic holy sites in Iraq from Daesh. The group recently resumed its support to the Iraqi army in its fight against Daesh in Tikrit operations. Al-Sadr distanced himself from another Shia militia group, the al-Youm al-Mawud, on Feb. 17 because of Sunni-Shia tensions.

Also, the U.S. forces confirmed the pull out of Shia militias from the battle in Tikrit. There are now 4,000 combined Iraqi security forces and federal police in the area, U.S. Central Command chief Lloyd Austin said at a U.S. senate hearing Thursday. Austin said that it was a precondition to have the Iraqi government in charge to provide support for the operation.

According to a statement on the Central Command’s official page, Austin said the U.S. troops pursued extremists, saying “we also dealt with Iran, which continues to act as a destabilizing force in the region, primarily through its Quds forces and through support for proxy actors such as Lebanese Hezbollah."

The Iraqi government had not asked for support from the U.S. or the coalition at the start of its offensive in Tikrit earlier this month. The battle is seen as a critical test for Iraqi ground forces to seal off militants from their strongholds in northern Iraq, particularly the city of Mosul.

But airstrikes around Tikrit, a strategic city about 110 miles (180 kilometers) northwest of Baghdad, commenced Wednesday night after a request from the Iraqi government.