US Designates Iraq-Based, Iran-Aligned Militia Group as Terrorist Organization

The State Department designated the Iraq-based Harakat Ansar Allah al-Awfiya as a terrorist group and linked it to a deadly Jan. 28 drone attack on U.S. troops.

Fighters of the Harakat Ansar Allah al-Awfiya Shiite group parade with their weapons in the southern Iraqi city of Basra on June 16, 2015. Haidar Mohammed Ali/AFP via Getty Images

The United States designated the Iraqi militia group Harakat Ansar Allah al-Awfiya (HAAA) as a terrorist organization on June 17 after linking the group to a deadly January attack.

The U.S. State Department announced it had named the Iraqi militia group and its secretary general, Haydar Muzhir Ma’lak al-Sa’idi, as Specially Designated Global Terrorists (SDGTs).