Popular Mobilization Forces

How Iran controls a network of armed groups to pursue its regional strategy

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星期三, 二月 7, 2024

But when it did, it hit at least 85 targets across Iraq and Syria.

Key Points:

But when it did, it hit at least 85 targets across Iraq and Syria.
The Pentagon was careful not to directly attack Iran itself, but it targeted Iranian-backed groups which have been conducting raids on US military assets in the region since before Hamas launched its attack on Israel on October 7.
But who are these groups that Iran can rely on to act in its interests and how much of a threat do they pose to regional security?

It wants to remove the US from the Middle East and to replace it as the guarantor of regional security.
And it refuses to recognise the state of Israel, instead working with Palestinian groups such as Hamas and Hezbollah to pressure the Jewish state.

Quds Force

The Quds Force is part of the Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and is the IRGC’s primary vehicle for foreign affairs.
According to the Council on Foreign Relations, Quds is largely responsible for providing training, weapons, money and military advice to a range of groups in the so-called “Axis of Resistance”.

Syria

Quds activities in Syria are reportedly overseen by Khalil Zahedi, nicknamed Abu Mahdi al-Zahdi.
Iran’s principal aims in Syria are to keep the Assad regime in power, maximise Iranian influence, protect Shia minorities and reduce and – if possible – eliminate the US presence in Syria.

Iraq

In Iraq, since the US invasion, Iran-backed armed groups come under an umbrella organisation called the Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) or Quwwāt al-Ḥashd ash-Shaʿbī.
The PMF claims to have as many as 230,000 fighters, mainly Shia.
The same year PMF’s political wing contested elections in Iraq, coming second in the poll.

Lebanon

Hezbollah (Party of God) was formed in 1982 to fight against the Israeli invasion of Lebanon.
While heavily involved both politically and economically in Lebanon, Hezbollah is also active throughout the region, doing Iran’s business rather than looking after Lebanese interests.

Major headache for the west

Many of these groups now wield significant political influence in the countries in which they are embedded, so confronting them is not simply a military exercise.
And, as the dramatic rise in tensions in the region following the assault by Hamas on Israel (also planned with Iranian help) suggests, Iran is capable of fomenting trouble for the west almost at will across the region.

Christoph Bluth does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

US raids in Iraq and Syria: How retaliatory airstrikes affect network of Iran-backed militias

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星期一, 二月 5, 2024

Intelligence, Pressure, Attack, Weapon, Hezbollah, Quds Force, Axis of Resistance, Hamas, United States Central Command, Axis, Command, Death, Islam, Risk, Aggression, Bomber, Popular Mobilization Forces, IRGC, Drug

U.S. bombers struck dozens of sites across Iraq and Syria on Feb. 2, 2024, to avenge a drone attack that killed three American service members just days earlier.

Key Points:

U.S. bombers struck dozens of sites across Iraq and Syria on Feb. 2, 2024, to avenge a drone attack that killed three American service members just days earlier.
The retaliatory strikes were the first following a deadly assault on a U.S. base in Jordan that U.S. officials blamed on Iranian-backed militias.
Sites associated with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) were among those hit by American bombs.
The Conversation U.S. turned to American University’s Sara Harmouch and Nakissa Jahanbani at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point’s Combating Terrorism Center – both experts on Iran’s relationship with its network of proxies – to explain what the U.S. strikes hoped to achieve and what could happen next.

Who was targeted in the U.S. retaliatory strikes?

This term, Islamic Resistance in Iraq, does not refer to a single group per se.
Rather, it encompasses an umbrella organization that has, since around 2020, integrated various Iran-backed militias in the region.
Iran officially denied any involvement in the Jan. 28 drone strike.
In recent months, parts of this network of Iran-backed militias have claimed responsibility for more than 150 attacks on bases housing U.S. forces in Syria and Iraq.
As such, the U.S. retaliatory strikes targeted over 85 targets across Iraq and Syria, all associated with Iranian-supported groups and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

What do we know about the network targeted in the strike?

The Islamic Resistance in Iraq acted as a collective term for pro-Tehran Iraqi militias, allowing them to launch attacks under a single banner.
Over time, it evolved to become a front for Iran-backed militias operating beyond Iraq, including those in Syria and Lebanon.
Today, the Islamic Resistance in Iraq operates as a cohesive force rather than as a singular entity.
Operating under this one banner of Islamic Resistance, these militias effectively conceal the identities of the actual perpetrators in their operations.

What are the strikes expected to accomplish?

The strikes targeted key assets such as command and control centers, intelligence facilities, storage locations for rockets, missiles, drones and logistics and munitions facilities.
The goal is not only to degrade their current operational infrastructure but also to deter future attacks.
The action followed the discovery of an Iranian-made drone used in an attack on Jordan.

How will this affect Iran’s strategy in the region?

It is possible that the cessation was the result of pressure from Tehran, though this has been met with skepticism in Washington.
The U.S. airstrikes – combined with sanctions and charges – serve as a multifaceted strategy to deter further aggression from Iran and its proxies.
The comprehensive and broad nature of the U.S. response signals a robust stance against threats to regional stability and U.S. interests.
The aim is to isolate Iran diplomatically and economically, while squeezing its support for regional proxies.
Yet the impact and repercussions of such sanctions on Iran and the broader regional dynamics is complex.
Editor’s note: Parts of this story were included in an article published on Jan. 29, 2024.

The views, conclusions, and recommendations in this article are the authors’ own and do not reflect those of the Department of Defense or the U.S. government. Sara Harmouch does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.