Thursday, March 28, 2024
HomeIran News NowLatest News on Iranian TerrorismIranian-backed Shiite militia more dangerous than Sunni extremists, experts warn

Iranian-backed Shiite militia more dangerous than Sunni extremists, experts warn

suleimani-ameri

Shiite militia backed by the Iranian regime are more dangerous than Sunni extremists waging terror in the Middle East, experts and US officials have warned.

The United States should beware of the perils of collaborating with Tehran in the fight against the Islamic State terror group, regional academics said.

The Voice of America website quoted Maryland university researcher Phillip Smyth, who said the fight by Shiite militants has been ‘the number one factor’ in propping up the regime of Bashar al-Assad in Syria and stemming the advances of IS in Iraq.

Mr Smyth, author of the report ‘The Shiite Jihad in Syria and its Regional Effects’ said Shiite groups had come by the thousands mostly from Lebanon and Iraq, but from other countries as well.

He wrote: “It was a multi-pronged approach. It was extremely effective. They have really turned the tide.”

But in the long term, Shiite militias could provide the Iranian regime with opportunities to set up Hezbollah-like groups to spread Tehran’s ‘radical ideology more intensively’ and project their power into Shiite communities worldwide, Mr Smyth said.

He added: “Their long-term plans make ours look like a blink of an eye. They’re building two pincers around Saudi Arabia in the gulf and another around the Israelis.

“The growth of the Shiite militias has been complex, obscure, and hardly linear.

“What may have appeared to be a disjointed or even organic flow of Shiite fighters into Syria, ostensibly to defend the country’s Shiite holy sites, was actually a highly organized geostrategic and ideological effort by Iran to protect its ally in Damascus and project power within Syria, Iraq, and across the Middle East.”

And while IS has a reputation for a sophisticated recruiting campaign, Shiite militias ‘have a far more polished approach’ with recruitment techniques ranging from tents set up on Shiite pilgrimage routes to advanced Internet and social media methods, Mr Smyth said.

Another reason the activities of Shiite militias are being downplayed by the US is a possible rapprochement with Iran over that country’s nuclear ambitions, said Mr Smyth.

Smyth said that might lead to downplaying just what the Shiite militia are doing.

Mr Smyth said Shiite militias are not as media-minded about their crimes, and while IS atrocities make global headlines through social media, this is often used as ‘cover’ by Shiite militias for their own barbaric crimes, Mr Smyth said.

Yezid Sayigh, a senior associate at the Carnegie Middle East Center in Beirut, Lebanon, said myopic focus on IS may also be why the Shiite militias fly under the radar.

He said: “There is less interest in looking at the Shia militias fighting against ISIS. And maybe also raising questions about who is doing the fighting on the Baghdad government’s side would lead to uncomfortable questions about the whole strategy being cobbled together in Iraq, such as it is.”

And in written testimony prior to his confirmation hearing, Ashton Carter, President Obama’s nominee for Secretary of Defense, expressed alarm at Iran’s activities in Iraq.

He said: “I have concerns about the sectarian nature of Iran’s activities in Iraq. The United States must continue to make clear to the Iraqi government that Iran’s approach in Iraq undermines the needed political inclusion for all Iraqi communities, which is required to ultimately defeat IS.”

US officials have said that Shiite militias have been fighting IS, but that there have also been reports of them working with Iraqi security forces to target Sunnis.

According to a report in Bloomberg News, the US ambassador to Iraq offered air support to the leader of the Badr Organization.

Bloomberg said Mr Smyth’s big concern was the ‘militiaization’ of the Iraqi army, and his concerns were echoed by a former military general.

Special operations general Michael Flynn, who served in Iraq and is a retired leader of the Defense Intelligence Agency, said: “We built an Iraqi military to defeat all the enemies of Iraq and groups like the Badr Corps represent enemies of a stable, secure, and inclusive Iraq. As soon as we get done helping them with ISIS, they will very likely turn on us.”