U.S. Designates 4 ‘Iran-Aligned’ Militias in Iraq as Foreign Terrorist Organizations

Latest Developments

• New Terrorist Designations: The State Department designated four Iraq-based, “Iran-aligned” armed militias as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs) on September 17. The groups are Harakat al-Nujaba (HAN), Kata’ib Sayyid al-Shuhada (KSS), Harakat Ansar Allah al-Awfiya (HAAA), and Kata’ib al-Imam Ali (KIA), all of which were previously assigned the status of Specially Designated Global Terrorists.“ As the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism, Iran continues to provide support that enables these militias to plan, facilitate, or directly carry out attacks across Iraq,” the announcement stated, adding that the “groups have conducted attacks on the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad and bases hosting U.S. and Coalition forces, typically using front names or proxy groups to obfuscate their involvement.”
• Attacks on Coalition, U.S. Forces: All four designated groups are part of the Islamic Resistance in Iraq (IRI), a coalition of Iran-aligned Shia Islamist armed militias that have launched attacks against U.S. and coalition forces in Iraq and Syria since the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, atrocities in Israel and the subsequent war in Gaza. According to the State Department, “HAAA was involved in the IRI’s January 2024 drone attack on Tower 22 in Jordan that killed three U.S. service members.” Separately, KIA Secretary General Shibl al-Zaydi previously served as a financial coordinator between armed groups in Iraq and Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Quds Force, while KIA’s members have trained with the Lebanon-based Iranian proxy Hezbollah and in Iran itself.
• Iraq Crucial for Iranian Security: In August, Ali Larijani, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, signed a security agreement with Iraqi National Security Adviser Qasim al-Araji. Larijani’s visit also sought to bolster the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) — an official Iraqi security organization comprised of militias mostly backed by Iran. Elements within the PMF act at Tehran’s behest and have been crucial in advancing the Islamic Republic’s agenda in Iraq, including engaging in money laundering and illegal oil smuggling for Iran.

FDD Expert Response

“Iran-backed Shia militias in Iraq serve as the vanguard of the regime’s efforts to subvert Iraq’s sovereignty, acting as the security forces of a foreign actor and as a state within the Iraqi state. Designating these groups as terrorist organizations can help lay the groundwork for a better counterterrorism policy against what is left of the Axis of Resistance.”

“Washington’s decision to designate leading groups in the Iran-backed Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) as foreign terrorist organizations is both justified and long overdue. Yet the move risks straining U.S.-Iraqi relations. At the heart of the tension lies Baghdad’s controversial PMF law, amended to fold the militias into the state’s security apparatus. This is a step Washington views as a dangerous legitimization of Tehran’s influence. By issuing FTO designations, the United States appears intent on drawing a line, signaling that Baghdad’s embrace of Iranian-aligned forces is incompatible with a stable partnership with Washington.”

“To achieve a successful maximum pressure campaign against Iran, the administration must continue to target Tehran’s partners in Iraq. Designating these militias as FTOs is an important step and a sign that the administration is paying attention to Iran’s malign influence in the country. The administration should build upon these designations and recent sanctions to comprehensively target individuals and networks in Iraq that support Iran-backed militias and the regime in Tehran itself.”