Mushtaq Talib Al-Saeedi

Mushtaq Talib Al-Saeedi (Arabic: مشتاق طالب السعيدي; 1980 – 4 January 2024), also known as Abu Taqwa,^[1] was an Iraqi militant of Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba.^[2][3] He was also a senior commander of the 12th brigade of the Popular Mobilization Forces.^[4]

Mushtaq Talib Al-Saeedi
Nickname(s)	Abu Taqwa
Born	1980 (1980) Baghdad, Iraq
Died	4 January 2024 (aged 43) Baghdad, Iraq
Cause of death	Drone strike
Allegiance	Sadrist Movement (until 2011) Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba
Years of service	?–2024
Rank	Commander
Battles / wars	War in Iraq (2013–2017) Operation Inherent Resolve Attacks on U.S. bases in Iraq, Jordan, and Syria (2023–present)

Biography

Born in Baghdad in 1980, Al-Saeedi grew up in the neighborhood of Al-Kamaliyah [ar] in a poor family from the Diyala Governorate.^[5] He was a member of the Sadrist Movement until his arrest by the Multi-National Force in 2011 and joined Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq and Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba upon his release. During the Second War in Iraq, he was a commander in Al Tarmia in the northern suburbs of Baghdad. He then reached an important apparatus with the Iran-backed Popular Mobilization Forces in the Baghdad Belts region.^[6][7] He was responsible for Hezbollah al-Nujaba’s attacks against American military bases in Iraq and Syria.^[8]

Mushtaq Talib Al-Saeedi was assassinated in a targeted U.S. drone strike in Baghdad on 4 January 2024, at the age of 43.^[9][8]