Afghanistani Shia militia
Liwa Fatemiyoun (Arabic : لِوَاء الْفَاطِمِيُّون , romanized : Liwā’ al-Fāṭimīyūn ; Persian /Dari : لواء فاطمیون or لشکر فاطمیون ), literally "Fatimid Banner ", also known as Fatemiyoun Division or Fatemiyoun Brigade ,[ 3] is an Hazara Shia militia formed in 2014 to fight in Syria on the side of the Syrian government . The group's officially designated purpose, is the defense of the shrine of Zaynab bint Ali , and to fight "takfiri terrorists" in Syria, which would come to include the Islamic State (IS).[ 27] [ 28] It is funded, trained, and equipped by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), and fights under the command of Iranian officers.[ 4] Both the Fatemiyoun Brigade and the Iranian government downplay their relationship with one another, despite clear coordination and the brigade's operation under the auspices of the IRGC.[ 4] Liwa Fatemiyoun is also closely associated with Hezbollah Afghanistan .[ 4]
By late 2017, the unit was presumed to have numbered between 10,000 and 20,000 fighters.[ 3] According to Zohair Mojahed, a cultural official in the Fatemiyoun Brigade, the group suffered 2,000 killed and 8,000 wounded up to the end of 2017 while fighting in Syria.[ 29] A minimum of 925 deaths among the brigade's troops were documented based on monitoring of open source coverage of funeral services.[ 30]
^ a b "Iran mourns 7 Afghanistani killed fighting for Damascus ally" . Daily Star Lebanon . Archived from the original on 3 April 2015. Retrieved 7 May 2015 .
^ yalibnan (24 October 2015). "Top Iranian Guards commander, several fighters killed in Syria" . Archived from the original on 3 June 2016. Retrieved 6 May 2016 .
^ a b c d e f g Ahmad Shuja Jamal (13 February 2018). "Mission Accomplished? What's Next for Iran's Afghanistani Fighters in Syria" . War on the Rocks . Archived from the original on 14 May 2019. Retrieved 4 August 2018 .
^ a b c d Phillip Smyth (3 June 2014). "Iran's Afghanistani Shiite Fighters in Syria" . Washington Institute for Near East Policy. Archived from the original on 11 November 2017. Retrieved 18 May 2022 .
^ "Liwa al-Fatemiyoun" . Jihad Intel . Archived from the original on 4 August 2018. Retrieved 4 August 2018 .
^ "Syria rebel group denies releasing Afghanistani prisoners" . 23 February 2016. Archived from the original on 24 February 2016. Retrieved 23 February 2016 .
^ Sohranas. "More than 50 air raids carried out on Jeser al-Shagour, and the violent clashes continue around hills in Frikah village and al-Alawin checkpoint" . Syrian Observatory For Human Rights . Retrieved 9 May 2015 .
^ Leith Fadel (2 November 2015). "Syrian Army and Hezbollah Make Huge Gains in Southern Aleppo: Military Operations Begin in Al-Hadher" . Al-Masdar News . Archived from the original on 28 March 2019. Retrieved 29 August 2016 .
^ Amir Toumaj (3 August 2016). "Iranian military involvement in the battle for Aleppo" . The Long War Journal . Archived from the original on 1 February 2017. Retrieved 29 August 2016 .
^ "Iran Sent Them to Syria. Now Afghanistani Fighters Are a Worry at Home" . New York Times . 11 November 2017. Archived from the original on 17 August 2019. Retrieved 12 November 2017 . Not only did Iran send smaller units of the Fatemiyoun to cross Syrian borders and fight in Yemen
^ Ari Heistein; James West (20 November 2015). "Syria's Other Foreign Fighters: Iran's Afghanistani and Pakistani Mercenaries" . National Interest. Retrieved 18 May 2022 .
^ a b Drums Of War: Israel And The "AXIS OF RESISTANCE" (PDF) , International Crisis Group, 2 August 2010, archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-03-04
^ Cite error: The named reference Latifi
was invoked but never defined (see the help page ).
^ a b "After ISIS, Fatemiyoun Vows to Fight with "Axis of Resistance" to Destroy Israel" . Middle East Institute . Archived from the original on 2020-07-16. Retrieved 2020-07-23 .
^ a b Christoph Reuter. American Fury: The Truth About the Russian Deaths in Syria: Hundreds of Russian soldiers are alleged to have died in U.S. airstrikes at the beginning of February. Reporting by Der Spiegel shows that events were likely very different. Archived 2018-03-04 at the Wayback Machine Der Spiegel , 2 March 2018.
^ TOBIAS, SCHNEIDER. "THE FATEMIYOUN DIVISION AFGHANISTANI FIGHTERS IN THE SYRIAN CIVIL WAR" (PDF) . Middle East institute . Retrieved 2018-11-11 .
^ Amir Toumaj (2 April 2017). "Qassem Soleimani reportedly spotted in Syria's Hama province" . Long War Journal . Archived from the original on 3 April 2017. Retrieved 3 April 2017 .
^ Amir Toumaj (14 June 2017). "Qassem Soleimani allegedly spotted in Syria near the Iraqi border" . Long War Journal . Archived from the original on 1 May 2019. Retrieved 15 June 2017 .
^ "Including a Commander, new dead of Fatimioun militia in Syria" . Al-Dorar Al-Shamia . 27 July 2017. Archived from the original on 1 August 2017. Retrieved 28 August 2017 .
^ "UN aid convoy to make fresh attempt to reach battered Syrian rebel enclave" . www.yahoo.com . Archived from the original on 2019-04-19. Retrieved 2018-03-09 .
^ "Military commander in the Southern Front illustrates latest developments of Daraa" . 22 June 2018. Archived from the original on 18 November 2018. Retrieved 18 July 2018 .
^ Joe Truzman (14 February 2020). "IRGC trained militias suffer losses in northwest Syria" . Long War Journal . Archived from the original on 17 February 2020. Retrieved 17 February 2020 .
^ Mashal, Mujib; Faizi, Fatima (November 11, 2017). "Iran Sent Them to Syria. Now Afghan Fighters Are a Worry at Home" . The New York Times . Archived from the original on August 17, 2019. Retrieved November 12, 2017 .
^ "شورش مهدی بلخابی؛ نبرد علیه طالب به رهبری طالب" . ایندیپندنت فارسی . 19 August 2022.
^ Cite error: The named reference :0
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^ Cite error: The named reference :1
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^ "More than 2,000 Afghans killed in Syria fighting for Bashar al-Assad: Official" . Middle East Eye . Archived from the original on 2019-02-20. Retrieved 2020-07-23 .
^ "The Quds Force After Suleimani" . Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington . 2020-05-29. Retrieved 2021-08-23 .