For other uses of Hezbollah, see Hezbollah (disambiguation)

Hezbollah (disambiguation)

"Hezbollah" means "party of God" in Arabic. It is a popular name for Islamist organizations:* Hezbollah of Lebanon, a Shi'a political party and militia which played a major role in getting Israel out of Lebanon, officially listed as a terrorist organization by Israel, U.S., UK, the Netherlands,...

.

Kata'ib Hezbollah (KH) or Hezbollah Brigades is a Shi'a Iraqi Insurgent

Iraqi insurgency

The Iraqi Resistance is composed of a diverse mix of militias, foreign fighters, all-Iraqi units or mixtures opposing the United States-led multinational force in Iraq and the post-2003 Iraqi government...

 group which has been active 4 months before the beginning of the Iraq War (although their first attack was on October 2003), not to be confused with the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah. It is said to be an offshoot of the "Special Groups", which are the Iranian backed elements of the Mahdi Army

Mahdi Army

The Mahdi Army, also known as the Mahdi Militia or Jaish al-Mahdi , was an Iraqi paramilitary force created by the Iraqi Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr in June 2003....

. Katai'b Hezbollah is a separate and independent organization and not part of the Mahdi Army and its Special Groups . According to the American forces it receives funding, training, logistics, and material from Iran's

Iran

Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...

 Quds Force. Claims which are denied by Iran. Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis, an adviser to Iran's Quds Force is known to be a senior adviser to Kata'ib Hezbollah. The US state department has also claimed Hezbollah provided weapons and training for the group. The group is known for uploading its videos of attacks on American forces on the internet.

In Summer 2008 US and Iraqi Forces launched a crackdown against Kata'ib Hezbollah (and the Special Groups). At least 30 of its members were captured during those months. Many of the group's leaders were captured and as result much of the leadership fled to Iran.

On 2 July 2009 the group was added to the "U.S. State Department list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations

U.S. State Department list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations

"Foreign Terrorist Organization" is a designation of non-United States-based organizations declared terrorist by the United States Secretary of State in accordance with section 219 of the U.S. Immigration and Nationality Act...

". The group is held responsible for numerous IED

Improvised explosive device

An improvised explosive device , also known as a roadside bomb, is a homemade bomb constructed and deployed in ways other than in conventional military action...

 bombings, mortar

Mortar (weapon)

A mortar is an indirect fire weapon that fires explosive projectiles known as bombs at low velocities, short ranges, and high-arcing ballistic trajectories. It is typically muzzle-loading and has a barrel length less than 15 times its caliber....

, rocket

Rocket

A rocket is a missile, spacecraft, aircraft or other vehicle which obtains thrust from a rocket engine. In all rockets, the exhaust is formed entirely from propellants carried within the rocket before use. Rocket engines work by action and reaction...

 and RPG attacks as well as sniper

Sniper

A sniper is a marksman who shoots targets from concealed positions or distances exceeding the capabilities of regular personnel. Snipers typically have specialized training and distinct high-precision rifles....

 operations, targeting US and Iraqi Forces and the Green Zone

Green Zone

The Green Zone is the most common name for the International Zone of Baghdad. It is a area of central Baghdad, Iraq, that was the governmental center of the Coalition Provisional Authority and remains the center of the international presence in the city...

, including a November 2008 rocket attack that killed two U.N. workers.

In December, 2009, the group is said to have intercepted the unencrypted video feed of MQ-1 Predator UAV

Unmanned aerial vehicle

An unmanned aerial vehicle , also known as a unmanned aircraft system , remotely piloted aircraft or unmanned aircraft, is a machine which functions either by the remote control of a navigator or pilot or autonomously, that is, as a self-directing entity...

s above Iraq.

February 12, 2010 a firefight with suspected members of Kata'ib Hizballah, a group that the U.S. State Department says has ties to Lebanon's Hezbollah, occurred 265 km (164.7 mi) southeast of Baghdad in a village near the Iranian border, the U.S. military said. Twelve people were arrested, it said. "The joint security team was fired upon by individuals dispersed in multiple residential buildings ... members of the security team returned fire, killing individuals assessed to be enemy combatants," the military said in a statement. Although the Provincial Iraqi officials said many of the dead were innocent bystanders, and demanded compensation. They said eight people were killed.

On July 13, 2010 General Ray Odierno named the Shi'ite militia Kata'ib Hizballah, which the U.S. State Department says has ties to Lebanon's Hezbollah, as the group behind the threats. "In the last couple weeks there's been an increased threat ... and so we've increased our security on some of our bases," Odierno told reporters at a briefing in Baghdad.

On July 21, 2010 Iran is supporting three Shiite extremist groups in Iraq that have been attempting to attack US bases, General Ray Odierno said. Kata'ib Hezbollah is one of these groups and the other groups are Asaib Ahl al-Haq (League of the Righteous), and the Promise Day Brigade.

An Iraqi intelligence official estimated the group's size at 1,000 fighters and said the militants were paid between $300 to $500 per month.

Recent activity

On June 6, 2011, Kata'ib Hezbollah killed five American troops (which rose to 6 after the death of Marcus A. Centron) in an IRAM rocket attack.
On June 30, 2011, and in the memory of listing the group on US list for terrorist groups, Kata'ib Hezbollah killed three more in a similar operation using 'Karrar' rockets, although statement released by the group said 'most of the joint CIA-troops US military camp died' in the rocket attack.
These have been the deadliest strikes on US forces in Iraq by any armed group in since June 2009.