Iran Hints at Using Foreign Militias in Domestic Crackdown

Musa Ghazanfarabadi, head of the Tehran Islamic Revolution Courts, told religious students in Qom this month that his government could use foreign fighters to crack down on potential popular uprisings in Iran.

"If we don't support [our] revolution, the Iraqi Hashd al-Shaabi, the Afghan Fatemiyoun [Brigade], the Pakistani Zainebiyoun and Yemeni Houthis will come and support the revolution," he said.

Ghazanfarabadi was referring to Shiite militias from Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Yemen that have been formed by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

These armed groups have played a major role in conflicts in Iraq and Syria, supporting the governments of both countries. In Yemen, the Iran-backed Houthis have been fighting Saudi-backed government forces for years.

Saeed Bashirtash, a Belgium-based Iranian affairs analyst, believes that the presence of IRGC-controlled foreign militia could threaten any national movement seeking democratic change in Iran.

"These trained, brainwashed Shiite fighters can become a strong arm for the theocrats of Iran against anything intimidating them," he told. "They could be used as a force to suppress and destroy any democratic movement in the future."

Afghan fighters

Iran has sent thousands of Shiite Afghan refugees to Syria to fight alongside other Iranian-backed forces in support of the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Iran's army recruits them with promises of citizenship and improved living standards for their families.

https://emiratespressreleases.net/2019/03/18/iran-hints-at-using-foreign-militias-in-domestic-crackdown/