Two Iranian-backed Iraqi Shia militias are shown above transporting US-made vehicles and equipment on the road to the central Iraqi city of Samarra, where battles against the Islamic State are currently ongoing. The two militias are influential in the Popular Mobilization Front, the militia umbrella organization that is backed by the Iraqi government and led by a US-designated terrorist who is an agent of Iran.
The videos were re-released by other outlets, including one that has English-language captions detailing the equipment.
One militia, Kata’ib Hezbollah (or the Hezbollah Brigades), was seen moving an M1 Abrams tank, three M198 howitzers, and at least one M88 Recovery Vehicle, Humvee, and a Medium Tactical Vehicle Replacement (MTVR) cargo truck each. The other militia, Asaib al Haq (League of the Righteousness), which is led by several US-designated terrorists, was seen transporting at least two M113 armored personnel carriers.
This is not the first time Iraqi Shia militias have been seen with US-made equipment and vehicles. Earlier last year, Hezbollah Brigades, a US-designated foreign terrorist organization, showed an Abrams flying the Hezbollah Brigades flag. Additionally, the group has also published two videos from Iraq’s Anbar province in which several US-made vehicles are used by its forces. [See LWJ report, Video shows Hezbollah Brigades convoy transporting American M1 tank, and Threat Matrix report, Hezbollah Brigades flaunts US equipment in Anbar operation.]
The Badr Organization, another Iranian-backed Shiite militia, has also publicized photos showing its forces in possession of an Abrams. These photos showed the militia with the tank, and at least one US AT-4 anti-tank rocket, near Saqlawiyah in Anbar last year. [See Threat Matrix report, Badr Organization fighters pose with US M1 Abrams tank.]
Last month, Kata’ib Sayyid al Shuhada (KSS), which is closely linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) — Qods Force and led by US-designated terrorist Mustafa al Sheibani, was seen using an M1 Abrams likely in Iraq’s Salahadin Province. [See Threat Matrix report, Iranian-backed militia seen with US tank in Iraq.]
Photos showing the Hezbollah Brigades transporting the US-made equipment:
Asaib al Haq transporting M113 APC’s:
