The United States State Department designated Aas’ib Ahl al-Haq, also known as AAH, one of the Iranian regime’s proxy groups in Iraq, as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) on Friday. The U.S. Secretary also declared, his department has designated the AAH’s leaders, brothers Qays and Laith al-Khazali, as Specially Designated Global Terrorists (SDGT).
“AAH and its leaders are violent proxies of the Islamic Republic of Iran,” Secretary Pompeo continued, “Acting on behalf of their masters in Tehran, they use violence and terror to further the Iranian regime’s efforts to undermine Iraqi sovereignty.”
The State Department also confirmed, a long-time revelation by the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), of the Iranian regime’s funding of terrorist groups in Iraq saying, “AAH is extensively funded and trained by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Quds Force, an entity that was part of the IRGC designation as an FTO in April 2019.”
“AAH, led by Qays and Laith al-Khazali, is an Iran-backed, militant organization that has claimed responsibility for more than 6,000 attacks against U.S. and Coalitions forces since its creation in 2006. AAH has carried out highly sophisticated operations, including mortar attacks on an American base, the downing of a British helicopter, and an attack on the Karbala Provincial Headquarters that resulted in the capture and murder of five American soldiers,” read the statement.
“Today’s designations follow an action taken by the U.S. Department of the Treasury on December 6, 2019, to designate Qays and Laith al-Khazali pursuant to E.O. 13818 for their involvement in serious human rights abuses in Iraq, including approving the use of lethal force against protesters for the purpose of public intimidation,” added the statement.
According to the State Department, “AAH, led by Qays and Laith al-Khazali, is an Iran-backed, militant organization that has claimed responsibility for more than 6,000 attacks against U.S. and Coalitions forces since its creation in 2006.”
This designation follows the U.S. strike targeting Qasem Soleimani, commander of the IRGC terrorist Quds Force, along with Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, the head of Iraq’s suppressive Bassij was killed by the US military strike in Iraq.
In an article published on February 08, 2018, the NCRI wrote, “The Iranian Regime has a network of foreign proxy groups all across the Middle East, from large formal organizations like Hezbollah to small splinter groups like Asaib Ahl al-Haq. This means that Iranian influence is spreading further than ever before and is doing so in increasingly diverse ways.”
How the #Iranian Regime Is Using Its Proxy Groups and How the Us Can Tackle Them#Iran Regime has a network of foreign proxy groups all across the Middle East, from large formal organizations like Hezbollah 2 small splinter groups like Asaib Ahl al-Haq. https://t.co/6qayTIN7zB pic.twitter.com/34ReIIDVvU
— NCRI-FAC (@iran_policy) February 8, 2018