Iran has shifted away from relying on large military groups and has hand-picked hundreds of trusted fighters from among the members of its most powerful militia allies in Iraq, forming smaller, elite and fiercely loyal factions, Reuters reported in an exclusive report on Friday.
“The new covert groups were trained last year in drone warfare, surveillance and online propaganda and answer directly to officers in Iran's Quds Force, the arm of its Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) that controls its allied militia abroad,” the report said.
Reuters cited confidential Iraqi security officials, militia commanders and Western diplomatic and military sources, who confirmed that the Iranian-made militia groups have been responsible for a series of increasingly sophisticated attacks against the United States and its allies.
The tactic reflects Iran's response to the death of military mastermind and Quds Force chief Qassem Soleimani, who closely controlled Iraq's Shi'ite militia until he was killed last year by a US drone missile strike.
His successor, Esmail Ghaani, was not as familiar with Iraq's internal politics and never exerted the same influence over the militia as Soleimani.
“The shift to relying on smaller groups also brings tactical advantages. They are less prone to infiltration and could prove more effective in deploying the latest techniques Iran has developed to strike its foes, such as armed drones,” the report explained.
Iran is highly criticized for its constant interventions in Iraqi soil.
"The new factions are linked directly to the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps," an Iraqi security official said. "They take their orders from them, not from any Iraqi side."
