Al-Ashtar Brigades

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Al-Ashtar Brigades
سرايا الأشتر
Active regionsBahrain
Ideology Khomeinism
Shia Islamism
Anti-West
Part of Islamic Resistance in Bahrain [1]
AlliesFlag of Iran.svg  Iran (claimed by Bahraini gov.)
InfoboxHez.PNG  Hezbollah (claimed by Bahraini gov.)
Kata'ib Hezbollah Iraq (claimed by Bahraini gov.) [2]
Shia militias in Qatif
Houthi Movement Yemen
OpponentsFlag of Bahrain.svg  Bahrain
Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg  United Arab Emirates [3]
Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg  Saudi Arabia
Flag of Israel.svg  Israel
Battles and warsthe Shia insurgency in Bahrain
Israel–Hamas war
Designated as a terrorist group by

The al-Ashtar Brigades (Saraya al-Ashtar, named after Malik al-Ashtar [5] ), or AAB for short, is the paramilitary branch of the Islamic Resistance in Bahrain, a Shiite militant group designated as a terrorist organization by the governments of Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, United States and Canada. [5]

Contents

Terrorist designation

CountryDateRef
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  United Kingdom 22 December 2014 [6]
Flag of Bahrain.svg  Bahrain June 2017 [5]
Flag of Egypt.svg  Egypt June 2017 [5]
Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg  Saudi Arabia June 2017 [5]
Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg  United Arab Emirates June 2017 [5]
Flag of the United States.svg  United States July 2018 [7]
Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada 2019 [8]

In June 2017, the al-Ashtar Brigades were designated as terrorist organizations by Bahrain, Egypt, the UAE and Saudi Arabia. [5] The United States Department of State has designated the group as a terrorist organization, as of July 2018. [5] [9] Canada classified the Brigades as a terrorist organization in 2019. [8]

In March 2024, the Department of State of the United States designated the organization as a terrorist organization, stating that the group wants to destabilize and threaten the security of Bahrain. [10]

Ideology

The al-Ashtar Brigades has stated that it is loyal to the government of Iran, and has adopted branding consistent with the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps. [11]

Attacks

The group its suspect for over 20 attacks in Bahrain, primarily targeting police and security forces. [5]

The first attack of the group was on May 29 of 2013, when a remote-controlled explosive device which blasts near police officers that they were removing a barricades in the village of Bani Jamra, Northern Governorate. The attack wounds at least seven officers. [12] [13] The authorities raised alarm bells over this attack, arresting ten militants the next day. [14] On July 17, a car bomb blasts Shaikh Eisa Bin Salman Mosque in Riffa, Southern Governorate. The attack only left material damage. [15] On the next month, a car bomb detonated in front a recreational area in Budaiya, Northern Governorate. [16]

The group was designated a terrorist organization by Bahrain after the 2014 Daih bombing. [17] [8] Months later, on December 8, an improvised device blasts in Dumistan, Northern Governorate, killed a police officer. [18] [19] In the next day, an improvised device blasts in Karzakan, Northern governorate, killing a civilian and wounding other. [20] [21]

On January 31, 2015 a bomb blasts near a police patrol in Muqsha, wounding two officers. [22] Two months later, the group claimed an attack in the settlement of Karrana, Northern Governorate, which left two officers wounded. [23]

On January 14, 2017, after a pause of a year, members of Al-Ashtar Brigades attacked a officer in the village of Bani Jamra. The attack happens when authorities announces the execution of three militants. [24] [25] On January 29, an off duty security officer was killed by an AAB attack in Manama. [8] [26]

On May 2, 2024, the organization claimed to have launched a drone targeting the Israeli city of Eilat on April 27, targeting the headquarters of the company Trucknet in support of the Gazan people during the Israel–Hamas war. [27]

See also

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References

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