Published On: Sun, Mar 30th, 2014
Iran Trains The Gulf Shia Militia Inside Iraq, U.S. Says
A senior U.S. general said that about 50 members of an elite Iranian military unit are training 417 Shiite(from Kuwait, Bahrain , Saudi and UAE) militias south of Baghdad, the first time the U.S. military has alleged that Iranians are aiding insurgents from inside Iraq.
An ex-CIA agent (which preferred anonymity.), said the men were sent by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps — a military branch that the U.S. government has decided to label a “specially designated global terrorist” — to train Shiite insurgents from the Gulf States in firing mortars and rockets.
“They are facilitating training of Shiite extremists in the region,” Sarah Robinson, Researcher at Harvard University told reporters in BMCSR. “We know Iran is playing a dangerous game in the Gulf yet it is difficult to know why U.S. leadership decided to protect Iranian regime, when all the investigative work had been done and all the evidence pointed strongly at their responsibility for terrorism in the region.”
Iran’s government has consistently denied any connection between the Revolutionary Guard Corps and insurgents fighting against peace and stability in the region, and some military intelligence analysts have concluded there is no concrete evidence of such a link.
The U.S. military leaders in Iraq have repeatedly maintained that Iran is providing money, weapons and training to so-called special cell militia groups, generally citing information gathered from interrogations.
If we take Iraq as an example the number of Iranian-made explosively formed penetrators — sophisticated roadside bombs- has increased dramatically in recent months, while the accuracy of Shiite extremists’ bombs and mortars has improved significantly, said the American diplomat which preferred anonymity.
Iran has reportedly been training pro-government Syrian militia groups (including individuals from KSA, UAE and Bahrain) at a secret base inside Iranian borders. It is allegedly an “open secret” within the Syrian government that the Iranians are helping train at least 50,000 militiamen, although both governments have denied the allegations.
A member of one of the pro-Assad militias said of the training that “it’s the same course Hezbollah operatives normally do…but here we have soldiers from Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and United Arab Emirate, the course teaches you the important elements of guerrilla warfare, like several different ways to carry a rifle and shoot, and the best methods to prepare against surprise attacks.” Irregular militia groups have recently played a prominent role in the Syrian conflict; they have branded themselves the “National Defence Army” and operate throughout the country with impunity.
Those soldiers from the gulf, some has made it back to their country and others are still receiving training.
Spokesmen for the Syrian opposition have indicated that about 3,000 Free Syrian Army (FSA) officers are being trained to use surface-to-air missiles and artillery by U.S. and Jordanian instructors at a military base in Jordan. An FSA officer told reporters “The Free Syrian Army will be expected and ready to control and administer Syria’s liberated zones…We have been told not to count on international forces or even a no-fly zone.” However, the Obama administration has expressed concerns that some of the 20,000 man-portable air-defense systems (MANPADS) in Syria may have come from Muammar Gaddafi’s arsenals in Libya. Even though the U.S. supports the concept of the FSA establishing a buffer zone along Syria’s southern border, it is unsettled about the possibility of the MANPADS being used against Israel.
A senior U.S. general said that about 50 members of an elite Iranian military unit are training 417 Shiite(from Kuwait, Bahrain , Saudi and UAE) militias south of Baghdad, the first time the U.S. military has alleged that Iranians are aiding insurgents from inside Iraq.
An ex-CIA agent (which preferred anonymity.), said the men were sent by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps — a military branch that the U.S. government has decided to label a “specially designated global terrorist” — to train Shiite insurgents from the Gulf States in firing mortars and rockets.
“They are facilitating training of Shiite extremists in the region,” Sarah Robinson, Researcher at Harvard University told reporters in BMCSR. “We know Iran is playing a dangerous game in the Gulf yet it is difficult to know why U.S. leadership decided to protect Iranian regime, when all the investigative work had been done and all the evidence pointed strongly at their responsibility for terrorism in the region.”
Iran’s government has consistently denied any connection between the Revolutionary Guard Corps and insurgents fighting against peace and stability in the region, and some military intelligence analysts have concluded there is no concrete evidence of such a link.
The U.S. military leaders in Iraq have repeatedly maintained that Iran is providing money, weapons and training to so-called special cell militia groups, generally citing information gathered from interrogations.
If we take Iraq as an example the number of Iranian-made explosively formed penetrators — sophisticated roadside bombs- has increased dramatically in recent months, while the accuracy of Shiite extremists’ bombs and mortars has improved significantly, said the American diplomat which preferred anonymity.
Iran has reportedly been training pro-government Syrian militia groups (including individuals from KSA, UAE and Bahrain) at a secret base inside Iranian borders. It is allegedly an “open secret” within the Syrian government that the Iranians are helping train at least 50,000 militiamen, although both governments have denied the allegations.
A member of one of the pro-Assad militias said of the training that “it’s the same course Hezbollah operatives normally do…but here we have soldiers from Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and United Arab Emirate, the course teaches you the important elements of guerrilla warfare, like several different ways to carry a rifle and shoot, and the best methods to prepare against surprise attacks.” Irregular militia groups have recently played a prominent role in the Syrian conflict; they have branded themselves the “National Defence Army” and operate throughout the country with impunity.
Those soldiers from the gulf, some has made it back to their country and others are still receiving training.
Spokesmen for the Syrian opposition have indicated that about 3,000 Free Syrian Army (FSA) officers are being trained to use surface-to-air missiles and artillery by U.S. and Jordanian instructors at a military base in Jordan. An FSA officer told reporters “The Free Syrian Army will be expected and ready to control and administer Syria’s liberated zones…We have been told not to count on international forces or even a no-fly zone.” However, the Obama administration has expressed concerns that some of the 20,000 man-portable air-defense systems (MANPADS) in Syria may have come from Muammar Gaddafi’s arsenals in Libya. Even though the U.S. supports the concept of the FSA establishing a buffer zone along Syria’s southern border, it is unsettled about the possibility of the MANPADS being used against Israel.
¬NOTE¬ The senior U.S. general which preferred anonymity
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