Kata'ib Hezbollah

Kata'ib Hezbollah (), also known as the Hezbollah Brigades, is an Iraqi Shia paramilitary group which is a part of the Iraqi Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), staffing the 45th, 46th, and 47th Brigades. During the Iraq War (2003–11), the group fought against Coalition forces. It has been active in the War in Iraq (2013–2017) and the Syrian Civil War. The group was commanded by Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis until he was killed in a US drone attack in 2020. Thereafter, Abdul Aziz al-Muhammadawi (Abu Fadak) became the new leader of the PMF. The group seeks to establish an Iran-aligned government in Iraq, expel American forces from the country, and advance the regional and international interests of Iran in Iraq and the region. The group is responsible for killing hundreds of U.S. soldiers and takes a central part in carrying out attacks against U.S. targets in Iraq and acts as part of the Axis of Resistance. Kata'ib Hezbollah has received extensive training, funding, logistic support, weapons, and intelligence from the IRGC's overseas military-intelligence service Quds Force.

Kata'ib Hezbollah (KH) is officially listed as a terrorist organization by the governments of Japan, United Arab Emirates, and the United States. KH is an official part of Iraq's security apparatus.

History

Formation

KH was established in March 2003 as a result of a union of several pro-Iranian groups following the invasion of Iraq by the United States and United Kingdom that overthrew the regime of Saddam Hussein. The conflict continued for much of the next decade as an insurgency emerged to oppose the Coalition forces and the post-invasion Iraqi government.

The group was founded by Jamal Jafaar al-Ibrahim, known as Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, an Iraqi-Iranian dual national designated as a terrorist by US in 2009. Its first members were from the Badr Organization. Al-Muhandis — an adviser to the Quds Force of the IRGC and a former member of the Badr Organization — was the first commander of KH. The group is directly subordinate to the Quds Force and operates under its instructions and guidance. The US State Department has claimed that Lebanon-based Hezbollah provided via Unit 3800 weapons and training for the group.

Iraqi insurgency (2003–2011)

The group came to prominence in 2007 for attacks against U.S.-led Coalition forces in Iraq, and was known for uploading videos of its attacks on American forces on the internet. The militia's main tactics were to fire rockets and mortar shells at U.S. bases, sniper attacks, and plant roadside bombs to attack U.S. and Coalition forces.

On 19 July 2005, U.S. Army Sgt. Arthur R. McGill was killed in Baghdad, when a makeshift bomb planted by Kata'ib Hezbollah exploded while he was on mounted patrol in a Humvee.

On 17 October 2006, four U.S. servicemembers were killed when the Buffalo MRAP they were riding in was struck by an improvised-explosive device west of Baghdad at about 6:50 a.m. The attack was captured on video and posted online by KH.

On 27 February 2007, three American soldiers were killed and another was wounded by a roadside bomb planted by KH militants in the Iraqi capital.

On 15 March 2007, four U.S. soldiers were killed in eastern Baghdad when IEDs planted by KH detonated near their unit.

On 18 June 2007, U.S. Army Sgt. Eric L. Snell was killed when a KH sniper shot him in the face during a firefight with KH militiamen in Baghdad.

On 25 September 2007, Staff Sgt. Zachary B. Tomczak was shot dead by a KH sniper in Baghdad. His killing was captured on video and posted online by the KH militia.

On 4 October 2007, U.S. Army Spc. Avealalo Milo was killed by a KH sniper in Baghdad. The attack was recorded and subsequently published online by the militia.

On 20 November 2007, Alfred G. Paredez Jr. was killed when Kata'ib Hezbollah cell members detonated an IED in al-Baladiyat neighborhood of Baghdad.

On 4 June 2008, KH conducted a rocket attack that was meant to target Coalition forces but instead killed 18 civilians in Baghdad.

In mid-2008, U.S. and Iraqi forces launched a crackdown against the group and the " Special Groups", the US military term for Iran-backed militias in Iraq. At least 30 of its members were captured during those months. Many of the group's leaders were also captured and US officials claimed that "as result much of the leadership fled to Iran".

On 2 July 2009, KH was added to the U.S. State Department list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations. The group was held responsible for numerous IED, mortar, rocket and RPG attacks as well as sniper operations, targeting US and Iraqi forces, including a November 2008 rocket attack that killed two U.N. workers.

In December 2009, the group intercepted the unencrypted video feed of MQ-1 Predator UAVs above Iraq.

On 12 February 2010, a firefight with suspected members of the group occurred southeast of Baghdad in a village near the Iranian border, the U.S. military said. Twelve people were arrested, it said. "The joint security team was fired upon by individuals dispersed in multiple residential buildings ... members of the security team returned fire, killing individuals assessed to be enemy combatants," the military said in a statement. The Provincial Iraqi officials said many of the dead were innocent bystanders, and demanded compensation. They said eight people were killed.

On 13 July 2010, General Ray Odierno named KH as being behind threats against American bases in Iraq. "In the last couple weeks there's been an increased threat ... and so we've increased our security on some of our bases," Odierno told reporters at a briefing in Baghdad.

On 6 June 2011, KH militants fired rockets at Forward Operating Base Loyalty in eastern Baghdad killing six U.S. soldiers. Another five soldiers were also wounded in the attack.

On 29 June 2011, KH fired IRAM rockets that struck a US base near the Iranian border – COP Shocker. The attack resulted in the deaths of three American soldiers. A videotape of the rocket attack was published online by the militia.

In July 2011, an Iraqi intelligence official estimated the group's size at 1,000 fighters and said the militants were paid between $300 and $500 per month.

The Al-Qa'im border crossing has seen hastened military activity as the group is expected to play an important military and security role as the crossing with Syria is officially opened on September 30, 2019.

Post-US withdrawal

Wathiq al-Batat, a former KH leader, announced the creation of a new Shia militia, the Mukhtar Army, on 4 February 2013, saying its aim is to defend Shiites and help the government combat terrorism.

In 2014, the group began taking a role in the fight against ISIL in Iraq. Also in 2014, they and six other predominantly Shia Iraqi paramilitary groups formed the PMF. Since October 2016, KH along with the Iraqi army and other PMF groups has taken part in the Battle of Mosul against ISIL. They have been, alongside other PMF, active in fighting around Tal Afar

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