Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq
Encyclopedia
Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq (Arabic:
عصائب أهل الحق, English:
League of the Righteous) also known as the Khazali Network and previously known as Ahl al-Kahf (English:
The People of the Cave) is a Shi'a Insurgent
group in Iraq
and is known as the country's largest Special Group. Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq is alleged to receive Iran
ian funding and have links to the Iranian Quds Force. The group has claimed responsibility for over 6,000 attacks on US, Coalition and Iraqi Forces.
The groups strength was estimated at some 3,000 fighters in March 2007. In July 2011, however, officials estimated there were less than 1,000 Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq militiamen left in Iraq. The group is alleged to receive some $5 million worth of cash and weapons every month from Iran.
's Mahdi Army
after Shi'a uprising in 2004
to create his own Khazali network. When the Mahdi Army signed a cease-fire with the government and the Americans and the fighting stopped, Qais al-Khazali's faction continued fighting, during the battle Khazali was already issuing his own orders to militiamen without Muqtada al-Sadr's approval. The group's leadership which includes Qais Khazali, Abd al-Hadi al-Darraji (a politician in Muqtada al-Sadr's Sadr Movement) and Akram al-Kabi, however, reconciled with Muqtada al-Sadr in mid-2005. In July 2006 Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq was founded and became one of the Special Groups which operated more independently from the rest of the Mahdi Army. It became a completely independent organisation after the Mahdi Army's disbanding after the 2008 Shi'a uprising
. In November 2008 when Sadr created a new group to succeeded the Mahdi Army, named the Promised Day Brigades
he Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq (and other Special Groups) to join, however they declined.
The group has claimed responsibility for over 6,000 attacks including the October 10, 2006 attack on Camp Falcon, the assassination of the American military commander in Najaf, the May 6, 2006 downing of a British Lynx helicopter and the October 3, 2007 attack on the Polish ambassador. Their most known attack however, is the January 20, 2007 Karbala provincial headquarters raid
where they infiltrated the US army's headquarters in Karbala
, killed 1 soldier, then abducted and killed 4 more US soldiers. After the raid, the US launched a crackdown on the group and the raid's mastermind Azhar al-Dulaimi was killed in Baghdad, while much of the group's leadership including the brothers Qais and Laith al-Khazali and Lebanese Hezbollah member Ali Musa Daqduq who was Khazali's advisor was in charge of their relations with Hezbollah. After these arrests in 2007, Akram al-Kabi who had been the military commander of the Mahdi Army until May 2007, led the organisation. In 2008 many of the groups fighters and leaders fled to Iran after the Iraqi Army was allowed to re-take control of Sadr City
and the Mahdi Army was disbanded. Here most fighters were re-trained in new tactics. It resulted in a major lull in the group's activity from May to July 2008.
In February 2010 the group kidnapped US military contractor Issa T. Salomi a US citizen of Iraqi origin. The first high-profile kidnapping of a foreigner in Iraq since the kidnapping of British IT expert Peter Moore and his four bodyguards (which was also done by Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq). The group demanded release of all their fighters being imprisoned by the Iraqi authorities and US military in return for his release. In Peter Moore's case, his four bodyguards were killed but Moore himself was released when the group's leader Qais al-Khazali was released in January 2010. Prior to Qazali's release, security forces had already released over 100 of the group's members including Laith al-Khazali. Salomi was released in March 2010 return for the release of 4 of their fighters, being held in US custody. In total 450 members of the group have been handed over from US to Iraqi custody since the kidnapping of Peter Moore, over 250 of which have been released by the Iraqi authorities.
On July 21, 2010 General Ray Odierno said Iran is supporting three Shiite extremist groups in Iraq that have been attempting to attack US bases, General Ray Odierno, said Wednesday. One of the groups is Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq and the other two are Promise Day Brigade and Ketaib Hezbollah.
In December 2010 it was reported that notorious Shi'a militia commanders such as Abu Deraa
and Mustafa al-Sheibani
were returning from Iran to work with Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq. Iranian Grand Ayatollah Kazem al-Haeri
was identified as the group's spiritual leader.
's Revolutionary Guards' Quds Force as well as Iranian-backed Lebanse
group Hezbollah. By March 2007, Iran was providing the network between $750,000 and $3 million in arms and financial support each month. Abu Mustafa al-Sheibani
, a former Badr Brigades member who ran an important smuggling network known as the Sheibani Network
played a key role in supplying the group. The group was also supplied by a smuggling network headed by Ahmad Sajad al-Gharawi a former Mahdi Army
commander, mostly active in Maysan Governorate.
Arabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
عصائب أهل الحق, English:
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
League of the Righteous) also known as the Khazali Network and previously known as Ahl al-Kahf (English:
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
The People of the Cave) is a Shi'a Insurgent
Iraqi insurgency
The Iraqi Resistance is composed of a diverse mix of militias, foreign fighters, all-Iraqi units or mixtures opposing the United States-led multinational force in Iraq and the post-2003 Iraqi government...
group in Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
and is known as the country's largest Special Group. Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq is alleged to receive Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
ian funding and have links to the Iranian Quds Force. The group has claimed responsibility for over 6,000 attacks on US, Coalition and Iraqi Forces.
The groups strength was estimated at some 3,000 fighters in March 2007. In July 2011, however, officials estimated there were less than 1,000 Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq militiamen left in Iraq. The group is alleged to receive some $5 million worth of cash and weapons every month from Iran.
History
Qais al-Khazali split from Muqtada al-SadrMuqtada al-Sadr
Sayyid Muqtadā al-Ṣadr is an Iraqi Islamic political leader.Along with Ali al-Sistani and Ammar al-Hakim of the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq, Sadr is one of the most influential religious and political figures in the country not holding any official title in the Iraqi government.-Titles:He is...
's Mahdi Army
Mahdi Army
The Mahdi Army, also known as the Mahdi Militia or Jaish al-Mahdi , was an Iraqi paramilitary force created by the Iraqi Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr in June 2003....
after Shi'a uprising in 2004
Iraq spring fighting of 2004
The Iraq Spring Fighting of 2004 was a series of operational offensives and various major engagements during the Iraq War...
to create his own Khazali network. When the Mahdi Army signed a cease-fire with the government and the Americans and the fighting stopped, Qais al-Khazali's faction continued fighting, during the battle Khazali was already issuing his own orders to militiamen without Muqtada al-Sadr's approval. The group's leadership which includes Qais Khazali, Abd al-Hadi al-Darraji (a politician in Muqtada al-Sadr's Sadr Movement) and Akram al-Kabi, however, reconciled with Muqtada al-Sadr in mid-2005. In July 2006 Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq was founded and became one of the Special Groups which operated more independently from the rest of the Mahdi Army. It became a completely independent organisation after the Mahdi Army's disbanding after the 2008 Shi'a uprising
Iraq Spring Fighting of 2008
The Iraq Spring Fighting of 2008 was a series of clashes between the Mahdi Army and the Iraqi Army supported by coalition forces, in southern Iraq and Baghdad, that began with an Iraqi offensive in Basra...
. In November 2008 when Sadr created a new group to succeeded the Mahdi Army, named the Promised Day Brigades
Promised Day Brigades
The Promised Day Brigades , originally called the Muqawimun is an Shi'a Islamist, Iraqi Insurgent group and one of Iraq's largest and most powerful Special Groups...
he Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq (and other Special Groups) to join, however they declined.
The group has claimed responsibility for over 6,000 attacks including the October 10, 2006 attack on Camp Falcon, the assassination of the American military commander in Najaf, the May 6, 2006 downing of a British Lynx helicopter and the October 3, 2007 attack on the Polish ambassador. Their most known attack however, is the January 20, 2007 Karbala provincial headquarters raid
Karbala provincial headquarters raid
The raid of the Karbala provincial headquarters was an infiltration attack carried out on 20 January 2007 by insurgent commandos, with possible Iranian involvement, on a meeting of U.S. and Iraqi officials at the governor's compound in Karbala to discuss security for the Shia ceremony of Ashoura...
where they infiltrated the US army's headquarters in Karbala
Karbala
Karbala is a city in Iraq, located about southwest of Baghdad. Karbala is the capital of Karbala Governorate, and has an estimated population of 572,300 people ....
, killed 1 soldier, then abducted and killed 4 more US soldiers. After the raid, the US launched a crackdown on the group and the raid's mastermind Azhar al-Dulaimi was killed in Baghdad, while much of the group's leadership including the brothers Qais and Laith al-Khazali and Lebanese Hezbollah member Ali Musa Daqduq who was Khazali's advisor was in charge of their relations with Hezbollah. After these arrests in 2007, Akram al-Kabi who had been the military commander of the Mahdi Army until May 2007, led the organisation. In 2008 many of the groups fighters and leaders fled to Iran after the Iraqi Army was allowed to re-take control of Sadr City
Sadr City
Sadr City is a suburb district of the city of Baghdad, Iraq. It was built in 1959 by Prime Minister Abdul Karim Qassim and later unofficially renamed Sadr City after deceased Shia leader Mohammad Mohammad Sadeq al-Sadr....
and the Mahdi Army was disbanded. Here most fighters were re-trained in new tactics. It resulted in a major lull in the group's activity from May to July 2008.
In February 2010 the group kidnapped US military contractor Issa T. Salomi a US citizen of Iraqi origin. The first high-profile kidnapping of a foreigner in Iraq since the kidnapping of British IT expert Peter Moore and his four bodyguards (which was also done by Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq). The group demanded release of all their fighters being imprisoned by the Iraqi authorities and US military in return for his release. In Peter Moore's case, his four bodyguards were killed but Moore himself was released when the group's leader Qais al-Khazali was released in January 2010. Prior to Qazali's release, security forces had already released over 100 of the group's members including Laith al-Khazali. Salomi was released in March 2010 return for the release of 4 of their fighters, being held in US custody. In total 450 members of the group have been handed over from US to Iraqi custody since the kidnapping of Peter Moore, over 250 of which have been released by the Iraqi authorities.
On July 21, 2010 General Ray Odierno said Iran is supporting three Shiite extremist groups in Iraq that have been attempting to attack US bases, General Ray Odierno, said Wednesday. One of the groups is Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq and the other two are Promise Day Brigade and Ketaib Hezbollah.
In December 2010 it was reported that notorious Shi'a militia commanders such as Abu Deraa
Abu Deraa
Abu Deraa , is an Iraqi Shia warlord whose men have been accused of terrorizing and killing Sunnis...
and Mustafa al-Sheibani
Abu Mustafa al-Sheibani
Abu Mustafa al-Sheibani also known as Hamid Thajil Warij al-Attabi or Hamid al-Sheibani is an Iraqi Shi'a leader who commands his own insurgent group and smuggling network known as the Sheibani Network, which became one of the Iraqi Special Groups...
were returning from Iran to work with Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq. Iranian Grand Ayatollah Kazem al-Haeri
Kazem al-Haeri
Grand Ayatollah Kazem Husseini Haeri is a prominent Twelver Shi'a marja. Haeri was born in Iran, but moved to Iraq to lead the Twelver Shi'a community there. He was a top leader of the Al-Da'wa Party in Iraq...
was identified as the group's spiritual leader.
Funding
The Organisation is alleged to receive training and weapons from IranIran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
's Revolutionary Guards' Quds Force as well as Iranian-backed Lebanse
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
group Hezbollah. By March 2007, Iran was providing the network between $750,000 and $3 million in arms and financial support each month. Abu Mustafa al-Sheibani
Abu Mustafa al-Sheibani
Abu Mustafa al-Sheibani also known as Hamid Thajil Warij al-Attabi or Hamid al-Sheibani is an Iraqi Shi'a leader who commands his own insurgent group and smuggling network known as the Sheibani Network, which became one of the Iraqi Special Groups...
, a former Badr Brigades member who ran an important smuggling network known as the Sheibani Network
Sheibani Network
The Sheibani Network is an Iraqi smuggling network and Shi'a Iraqi Insurgent group led by Abu Mustafa al-Sheibani, an ex-commander of the Supreme Council for Islamic Revolution in Iraq's Badr Brigades. The group is said to be used by Iran's Revolutionary Guards' Quds Force to supply Iraqi Special...
played a key role in supplying the group. The group was also supplied by a smuggling network headed by Ahmad Sajad al-Gharawi a former Mahdi Army
Mahdi Army
The Mahdi Army, also known as the Mahdi Militia or Jaish al-Mahdi , was an Iraqi paramilitary force created by the Iraqi Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr in June 2003....
commander, mostly active in Maysan Governorate.
Organisational structure
As of 2006 Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq had at least four major operational branches:- The Imam al-Ali Brigade - Responsible for Southern Iraq (Iraq's 9 Shi'a governorates: Babil, al-Basrah, Dhi Qar, al-Karbala, Maysan, al-Muthanna, an Najaf, al-Qadisiyyah and Wasit Governorates)
- The Imam al-Kazem Brigade - Responsible for West-BaghdadKarkhKarkh or Al-Karkh is historically the name of the western half of Baghdad, Iraq, or alternatively, the western shore of the river Tigris as it ran through Baghdad. The eastern shore is known as Al-Rasafa....
(mainly the Shi'a Kadhimiya and Al Rashid districts but also some minor activity in the mixed Karkh district and the mainly Sunni Mansour districtMansour districtAl Mansour district is one of nine administrative districts in Baghdad, Iraq. It is named after Abu Ja'far al-Mansur, the second Abbasid Caliph and founder of Baghdad....
) - The Imam al-Hadi Brigade - Responsible for East-BaghdadRusafaAl Rusafa or Rasafa is the east-bank settlement of Baghdad, Iraq, or the eastern shore of the river Tigris. It is also one of nine administrative districts in Baghdad...
(mainly the Shi'a Thawra, NissanNew BaghdadNew Baghdad or Baghdad Al-Jidida is one of nine administrative districts in Baghdad, Iraq. This district has nine Neighborhood Advisory Councils and a District Advisory Council. It is located east of the city center...
and KarradaKarradaKarrada is a major affluent district of the city Baghdad, Iraq. It is of a mixed population but it is noted for having majority of Shia population. The presence of Christians are notable in the area...
districts but with some minor activity in the mixed Rusafa district and the mainly Sunni AdhamiyahAdhamiyahAl-Adhamiyah , also Azamiya, is a neighborhood and east-central district of the city of Baghdad, Iraq....
district) - The Iman al-Askari Brigade - Responsible for Central Iraq (mainly active the Shi'a areas in Southern Diyala, SamarraSamarraSāmarrā is a city in Iraq. It stands on the east bank of the Tigris in the Salah ad-Din Governorate, north of Baghdad and, in 2003, had an estimated population of 348,700....
City (in Salah ad-Din Governorate) and some Shi'a enclaves in NinawaNinawa GovernorateNinawa is a governorate in northern Iraq, and the Arabic name for the biblical city of Nineveh in Assyria. It has an area of and an estimated population of 2,453,000 people in 2003. Its chief city and provincial capital is Mosul, which lies across the Tigris river from the ruins of ancient...
and Kerkuk Governorates)