Kata’ib Hezbollah

Kata’ib Hezbollah (also Kata’ib Hizballah) is an Iraqi Shia militant group that seeks to institute an Iran-aligned government in Iraq, remove U.S. and coalition forces from the country and further Iranian interests in the region. KH has received support from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps–Quds Force, which has some influence over KH operations, and Lebanese Hezbollah. The group has been hostile towards the U.S. and its allies, spreading anti-US and pro-Iran propaganda in Iraq, as well as attacking U.S. personnel and facilities. KH became an official part of Iraq’s security apparatus, the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), in 2016.

Following the Hamas-led October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, Kata’ib Hezbollah and other similar Iraq-based groups launched an estimated 100 attacks against US forces in Iraq and Syria, according to the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (DNI).