Iraqi armed factions form Sharia Youth group
Several Shiite armed groups, which in recent months have targeted the US presence in Iraq, are setting up youth groups to prepare the next generation.
Little-known armed groups — possibly linked to pro-Iran Kataib Hezbollah — have in recent months targeted “vice” in Baghdad by attacking shops selling alcohol while simultaneously becoming more involved in religious youth groups that some claim may pose a danger for Iraq’s future.
The burning of the Kurdistan Democratic Party’s Baghdad offices in late October, as well as recent attacks on media outlets and on US-led international coalition logistics convoys and facilities, have been either attributed to or claimed by these groups.
One of the new-formed group is calling itself Rab’a Allah, and it has been fast-evolving alongside 3 other main groups affiliated with it, according to observers.
Observers say that some religious youth groups apparently connected with them should be watched closely. Many of the leaders of the newly founded organization the Sharia Youth Gathering (SYG) are actually former members of the Imam Hussein Scouts, affiliated also with Kataib Hezbollah.
