Kata'ib Sayyid al-Shuhada

The Master of Martyrs Battalion, better known as Kata'ib Sayyid al-Shuhada' (KSS; Arabic: كتائب سيد الشهداء, Battalion of the Master of Martyrs) and officially the 14th Brigade, is an Iraqi Shiite paramilitary group formed in 2013. Its stated mission is to protect "(Shia) shrines across the globe", preserve "Iraqi unity" and to "put an end to the sectarian conflict". KSS is funded, trained and equipped by IRGC's Quds Force and Hezbollah.

Kata'ib Sayyid al-Shuhada
كتائب سيد الشهداء
Kata'ib Sayyid al-Shuhada flag and logo
Leaders	Abu Ala al-Walai[1] Abu Mustafa al-Sheibani[2]
Dates of operation	2013–present[3]
Allegiance	Iraq
Group(s)	Liwa al-Sayyida Ruqayya (The Ja'afari Force)[4]
Active regions	Saladin Governorate, Iraq[5] Damascus Governorate, Syria[3] Daraa Governorate[3]
Ideology	Shia Islamism Wilayat al Faqih[6] Khomeinism Anti-Zionism
Size	10,000 (December 2020)[2]
Part of	Popular Mobilization Forces Islamic Resistance in Iraq (since 2020)
Allies	State allies  Iran[7] Ba'athist Syria (until 2024) National Defense Force  Russia  North Korea Non-state allies  Hezbollah[8] Liwa Abu al-Fadhal al-Abbas[3] Kata'ib Hezbollah[5] Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq[5] Badr Organization[5]
Opponents	Syria[5] Islamic Front Al-Nusra Front[5]  Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant Tahrir al-Sham[5]  United States[9]  Israel  Palestine Peshmerga
Battles and wars	Syrian Civil War Battle of Al-Shaykh Maskin[10] War in Iraq (2013–2017) Salahuddin campaign[11] Second Battle of Tikrit[12]
Website	Official website
Preceded by Sheibani Network[13]

The group has been described as an Iranian proxy, and is one of the original militias that formed the Popular Mobilization Forces in 2014. The group has close ties to Badr Organization and the IRGC.^[14]

KSS is also active in Syria, where its main focus is the protection of the Sayyidah Zaynab Mosque in a southern suburb of Damascus. It militarily supports the Syrian government and participates in the Syrian Civil War.^[3] It notably engaged in the Battle of Al-Shaykh Maskin where it fought alongside Syrian government forces.^[10]

On November 17, 2023, KSS and its leader Hashim Finyan Rahim al-Saraji (also known as Abu Ala al-Walai) were declared Specially Designated Global Terrorists (SDGT) under the counterterrorism authority Executive Order 13224 by the United States.^{[15][16][17][18]} Additionally, al-Saraji was placed on Office of Foreign Assets Control's Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) List.^[19]

See also

• List of armed groups in the War in Iraq
• List of armed groups in the Syrian Civil War
• Popular Mobilization Forces
• Holy Shrine Defender
• Private militias in Iraq

References

1. "US mulls how best to Control pro-Iran Factions | Iraq Business News - Part 2". 30 May 2017.
2. Michael Knights (23 June 2017). "Iran's Foreign Legion: The Role of Iraqi Shiite Militias in Syria". Washington Institute for Near East Policy. Retrieved 4 December 2014.
3. "Kata'ib Sayyid al-Shuhada". Tracking Terrorism. Retrieved 4 December 2014.
4. "Liwa al-Sayyida Ruqayya: Recruiting the Shi'a of Damascus".
5. "MMP: Kata'ib Sayyid al-Shuhada".
6. "قيادي في "الحشد الشعبي": نتبع ولاية الفقيه لا ساسة العراق". 3 August 2016.
7. Fahim, Kareem; Barnard, Anne (21 October 2015). "Russia Makes an Impact in Syrian Battle for Control of Aleppo". The New York Times.
8. "Hizb Allah's Gambit in Syria". 27 August 2013. Archived from the original on 20 August 2021. Retrieved 29 July 2018.
9. "الحشد يعلق على القصف الأمريكي ضد كتائب سيد الشهداء غرب الأنبار .. ويتوعد بالرد". قناة دجلة الفضائية.
10. "Syria Update: November 25 – December 02, 2014". Institute for the Study of War. Retrieved 3 December 2014.
11. "Iranian-backed militia seen with US tank in Iraq | FDD's Long War Journal". www.longwarjournal.org.
12. "Shiite militias, Iraqi forces surround Tikrit". 10 March 2015. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
13. "The Shiite Jihad in Syria and Its Regional Effects APPENDIX 2 Understanding the Organizations Deployed to Syria" (PDF). Washington Institute for Near East Policy. February 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 25, 2016. Retrieved 30 March 2015.
14. "Hizballah Cavalcade: Kata'ib Sayyid al-Shuhada Emerges: Updates on the New Iraqi Shia Militia Supplying Fighters to Syria". Retrieved 10 March 2015.
15. Knights, Michael. "Profile: Kataib Sayyid al-Shuhada". The Washington Institute.
16. "Counter Terrorism Designations". Office of Foreign Assets Control. November 17, 2023.
17. "Terrorist Designations of Iran-aligned Militia Groups". state.gov. November 17, 2023.
18. "U.S. Treasury Sanctions Iran-Aligned Militias in Iraq". U.S. Department of the Treasury. November 17, 2023.
19. "Hashim Finyan Rahim al-Saraji - Sanctions List Search (OFAC)". sanctionssearch.ofac.treas.gov.

External links

• Official website

• Shia Islam portal
• Iraq portal
• Asia portal