The US Department of State announced on Monday the designation of Iraq-based Harakat Ansar Allah al-Awfiya as “specially designated global terrorists.”
The group’s secretary-general, Haydar Muzhir Ma’lak al-Sa’idi, has also been designated a terrorist.
According to the State Department’s statement, Harakat Ansar Allah al-Awfiya is an Iran-aligned militia group within the “Islamic Resistance in Iraq (IRI).”
This front group includes multiple Iran-aligned terrorist and militia organizations such as Kata’ib Hizballah, Harakat al-Nujaba, and Kata’ib Sayyid al-Shuhada, which have been designated as terrorist organizations by the US. These groups have repeatedly attacked Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS forces in Iraq and Syria.
The statement highlighted that Harakat Ansar Allah al-Awfiya has claimed responsibility for numerous recent attacks on US military personnel in Iraq and Syria, including a drone attack in Jordan that killed three US service members. Additionally, the group has terrorized Iraqi civilians.
“The United States remains committed to using all available tools to counter Iran’s support for terrorism and to degrade and disrupt the ability of Iran-backed groups to conduct terrorist attacks,” the statement concluded.
