The Ahvaz National Resistance () is an ethnic Arab opposition movement in

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

that seeks an independent state in

Khuzestan Province Khuzestan Province (also spelled Xuzestan; fa, استان خوزستان ''Ostān-e Xūzestān'') is one of the 31 provinces of Iran. It is in the southwest of the country, bordering Iraq and the Persian Gulf. Its capital is Ahvaz and it covers ...

. Described by

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

i newspaper ''Haaretz'' as "an umbrella organization of all armed movements", the Ahvaz National Resistance claimed responsibility for the 2018 Ahvaz military parade attack. The

Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant An Islamic state is a State (polity), state that has a form of government based on sharia, Islamic law (sharia). As a term, it has been used to describe various historical Polity, polities and theories of governance in the Islamic world. As a t ...

later also claimed responsibility. Speaking to Iran International TV in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, Yaqoub al-Tostari, for one of the two groups that identify themselves as the

Arab Struggle Movement for the Liberation of Ahvaz The Arab Struggle Movement for the Liberation of Ahwaz ( ar, حركة النضال العربي لتحرير الأحواز, ḥarakat an-nidhāl al-arabiː litaħriːr al-aḥwāz; abbreviated ASMLA) is an Arab nationalist and separatist insur ...

, said the Ahvaz National Resistance was behind the attack, which killed 25 people excluding the five assailants, but did not specify which group. On 23 September 2018, Danish broadcaster DR stated that al-Tostari lives in

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

and had an interview with him, explaining a day later that the name "Yaqoub al-Tostari" is a cover, and that his real name is known to the broadcaster.

References

;Footnotes ;Notes National liberation movements Arab nationalist militant groups Arab nationalism in Iran Terrorism in Iran Militant opposition to the Islamic Republic of Iran Khuzestan conflict {{Terrorism-stub

See also

References