Islamic State of Iraq
The Islamic State of Iraq was a Salafi jihadist militant organization that fought the forces of the U.S.-led coalition during the Iraqi insurgency. The organization aimed to overthrow the Iraqi federal government and establish an Islamic state governed by Sharia law in Iraq.
Islamic State of Iraq traces its origins to Jama'at al-Tawhid wal-Jihad group, which was formed by the Jordanian national Abu Musab al-Zarqawi in Jordan in 1999. Al-Zarqawi led the group, until his death in June 2006. Jama'at fought the American occupation forces during the early Iraqi insurgency following the 2003 invasion of Iraq, and on 17 October 2004 al-Zarqawi had pledged allegiance to Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda network; and the group became known as "Tanzim Qaidat al-Jihad fi Bilad al-Rafidayn". In January 2006, AQI and seven other Sunni guerrilla groups formed the Mujahideen Shura Council, which on 15 October 2006 disbanded to form the "Islamic State of Iraq" organization, led by Abu Omar al-Baghdadi as its first Emir. Announcing the dissolution of both AQI and the MSC, al-Baghdadi declared that the previous organizations have been replaced by ISI.
Within weeks, former AQI leader Abu Hamza al-Muhajir pledged allegiance to Abu Omar al-Baghdadi and became ISI's war minister, thereby transferring control of around 22,000 AQI fighters and volunteers to ISI. At its height during 2006–2008, ISI declared the city of Baqubah as its capital and governed territories in its strongholds of Mosul, Al-Anbar, as well as in the regions of Baghdad and Diyala. In areas under its control, ISI implemented a strict version of Sharia law. The organization also maintained a formidable military force. The area under its control began diminishing following the American troop surge in 2007, during which dozens of ISI leaders were killed by the forces of the U.S.-led coalition. Although unaffiliated with the al-Qaeda network, the ISI was often labeled by U.S. military forces as "al-Qaeda in Iraq" until 2013.
ISI Emir Abu Omar al-Baghdadi and Minister of War Abu Hamza al-Muhajir were killed during a military operation by U.S.-led coalition forces on a safehouse on 18 April 2010. Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi became the Emir of ISI after the death of Abu Omar al-Baghdadi. On 7 April 2013, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi re-designated ISI as the "Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant", officially announcing the group's formal expansion into Syria and its intention to absorb the Al-Nusra Front thereby taking direct command over its fighters and territory. Al-Qaeda Emir Ayman al-Zawahiri strongly denounced the announcement and officially demanded the withdrawal of ISI from Syria ordering them to operate only within Iraq. Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi responded to al-Zawahiri by saying that the group's expansion into Syria as well as the absorption of the al-Nusra Front will continue to go ahead despite his orders. The ensuing events ignited a full-scale global conflict between ISIL and Al-Qaeda. After ISIL's rapid territorial expansion during its June 2014 Northern Iraq offensive, the group renamed itself as "ad-Dawlah al-Islāmiyah" and proclaimed itself to be a caliphate.
Background
ian militant Abu Musab al-Zarqawi started a group called Jama'at al-Tawhid wal-Jihad in 1999, aiming to overthrow the 'apostate' Kingdom of Jordan. Although they are believed to have assassinated US diplomat Laurence Foley in 2002, they became notorious for their violent campaign in Iraq, which began in August 2003.In October 2004, Zarqawi pledged alliance to Osama bin Laden and changed the name of his group to Tanzim Qaidat al-Jihad fi Bilad al-Rafidayn, often referred to as Al Qaeda in Iraq, which indulged in dozens of violent attacks per year in Iraq.
In January 2006, AQI joined seven Sunni Islamist groups to form the coalition of Mujahideen Shura Council and continued its attacks in Iraq. In June 2006, al-Zarqawi was killed by a United States airstrike, and the Egyptian Abu Ayyub al-Masri became the leader of AQI. Abu Omar al-Baghdadi, who led the Jaish al-Ta'ifa al-Mansurah group, became the new leader of Mujahideen Shura Council.
General characteristics
Formation
On 13 and 15 October 2006, messages on the Internet issued by the Mujahideen Shura Council officially declared the establishment of the Islamic State of Iraq, which should encompass the governorates of Baghdad, Anbar, Diyala, Kirkuk, Saladin, Niniveh and parts of Babil and Wasit – a swathe of central and western Iraq where most Sunni Arabs live.In its founding declaration, the ISI spokesperson asserted that the organization was inspired by the archetype of the Islamic state established by Muhammad in Medina. Urging all Muslims in Iraq to give bay'ah to Abu Omar al-Baghdadi, the declaration stated:
“And today we call on all Iraqi mujahideen, scholars and tribal sheikhs. And the general Sunnis; To pledge allegiance to the Commander of the Faithful, the honorable Sheikh Abu Omar al-Baghdadi, to listen and obey in times of action or hatred, and to work hard to strengthen the foundations of this state and to sacrifice life and treasure for it.”
Goals
Between 2003 and 2004, targets of the "Jama'at al-Tawhid wal-Jihad" group had included the assets of the US-led Multi-National Force in Iraq and the U.S.-installed Iraqi provisional government. After pledging allegiance to al-Qaeda in 2004, the group became a major insurgent faction that fought the forces of American occupation. Until its dissolution is October 2006, the goals of al-Qaeda in Iraq, as well as its allies in the Mujahideen Shura Council, included: expelling the US from Iraq, establishing an Islamic state in Iraq, and extending this program to neighboring countries. The objectives of its predecessor organization were also the core goals of the Islamic State of Iraq organization.ISI also aspired to declare itself as a Caliphate at some point in the future. After the establishment of ISI, the organization's first Emir Abu Omar al-Baghdadi stated in 2006:
" reached the end of a stage of jihad and the start of a new one, in which we lay the first cornerstone of the Islamic Caliphate project and revive the glory of our religion."A document explaining the mission, core principles and methodology of ISI published in 2006, described the organization as “the new Islamic state”, which emerged to wage Jihad against the forces of the "Crusader invasion" and establish Islamic governance in the region.
Leadership
When ISI was formed in October 2006, Abu Omar al-Baghdadi was declared as the organization's Emir. The US government initially viewed Abu Omar al-Baghdadi as a fictitious persona, invented to put an Iraqi face on the leadership of ISI which the US saw as a front organization of the global Al-Qaeda network. However, US military officials later came to believe that the Baghdadi 'role' had been taken by an actual ISI leader.Abu Ayyub al-Masri, was the leader of Al Qaeda in Iraq from June 2006 until its dissolution in October 2006. Weeks after the formation of ISI, Abu Hamza al-Muhajir gave bay'ah to Abu Omar al-Baghdadi and declared that AQI had ceased to exist, being entirely supplanted by the ISI. Al-Qaeda's central command acknowledged Abu Ayyub al-Masri's pledge of allegiance to al-Baghdadi, and Ayman al-Zawihiri confirmed in a 2007 interview that Al-Qaeda's Iraq branch no longer existed after its absorption by the ISI organization. Officially, Abu Hamza al-Mujahir was the Islamic State of Iraq's military commander, and from April 2007 its Minister of War.
Al-Masri and Omar al-Baghdadi were both reported killed on 18 April 2010 in a raid by Iraqi and US forces. On 16 May 2010, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was announced as the new leader of the Islamic State of Iraq; his deputy was Abu Abdallah al-Husseini al-Qurashi. On 14 May 2010, al-Masri was succeeded by Abu Suleiman al-Naser, who was in turn killed some time in 2011. Following Suleiman's death, the position of "War Minister" was replaced by a Military Council composed of former military officers of Ba'athist Iraq, under the leadership of Haji Bakr.
'Cabinet'
In April 2007, the ISI declared a 'cabinet' of ten 'ministers', under its leader Abu Omar al-Baghdadi.The 'ministers' included:
- Abdullah al-Janabi, Minister of Security, was already wanted by the Iraqi Criminal Court since 2005. In 2014 he was still a prominent militant in Fallujah.
- Abu Ayyub al-Masri, Minister of War, was already wanted by Iraqi and US-coalition authorities since 2005, and was killed by US/Iraqi forces in April 2010. He was succeeded by Abu Suleiman al-Naser.
Funding and financing
According to American authorities, the group lost considerable funding sources and popular support from 2007 onwards. A 2008 report on the group's funding reported that its most lucrative source of income was stolen oil in the region of Bayji, which yielded them $2 million a month. Other sources of income were kidnappings of wealthy Iraqi people for ransom, car theft, robbery, hijacking fuel trucks, counterfeiting, commandeering rations and shaking down Iraqi soldiers for ammunition, these activities brought in tens of millions of dollars. In addition, jihadists in Saudi Arabia and Syria and other elements outside Iraq provided funding.Between 2005 and 2010, according to an analysis by RAND Corporation of 200 documents—personal letters, expense reports and membership rosters—captured by US Forces between 2005 and 2010, 95% of the group's budget was raised in Iraq, from the oil business, kidnappings, extortion, cash of members from Mosul, etc. Only 5% of the budget came from outside donations.