Pakistani Shia militia
Liwa Zainebiyounلواء زينبیون Also known as Hezbollah Pakistan[ 1] [ 2] Commander Saqib Haider Karbalai † [ 3] Dates of operation 2012,[ 4] but officially in late 2014 – present[ 5] Allegiance
Active regions
Ideology
Slogan إِن يَنصُرْكُمُ ٱللَّهُ فَلَا غَالِبَ لَكُمْ [Quran 3:160 ] "If Allah helps you, none can defeat you."[ 1] [ 18] [ 19] Status Active (banned in Pakistan)[ 20] Size ~Several hundreds (est. 2014) [ 16] c. 800+ (est. 2019) [ 16] Part of Axis of Resistance [ 19] [ 21] Allies State allies
Non-State allies
Opponents State opponents
Non-State opponents
Battles and wars Designated as a terrorist group by{{unbulletedlist
The Followers of Zainab Brigade (Arabic : لِوَاء الزَّيْنَبِيُون , romanized : Liwā’ az-Zaynabīyūn , Persian : لواء زينبیون or لشکر زينبیون , Liwa Zeinabiyoun or Lashkare Zeinabiyoun , Urdu : لواء زینبیون ), also known as the Zainebiyoun Brigade or Zainebiyoun Division , is a Pakistani Shia Khomeinist militant group actively engaged in the Syrian Civil War .[ 35] [ 6] It draws recruits mainly from Shia Pakistanis living in Iran ,[ 6] [ 36] with some also Shia Muslim communities living in various regions of Pakistan.[ 5] [ 37]
It was formed and trained by the Iranian Revolutionary Guards and operates under their command.[ 6] Initially tasked with defending the Sayyidah Zaynab Mosque ,[ 7] [ 8] it has since entered frontlines across Syria.[ 5] Its dead are buried primarily in Iran.[ 6] [ 8] Approximately 158 of their fighters have died in Syria as of March 2019, excluding those killed in Israeli airstrikes. According to 2019 estimates, the total number of Pakistani fighters in the brigade barely exceeded 800.[ 16]
^ a b Ari Heistein; James West (20 November 2015). "Syria's Other Foreign Fighters: Iran's Afghan and Pakistani Mercenaries" . National Interest. Retrieved 18 May 2022 .
^ "DOSSIERS OF POLITICAL PARTIES INTENT ON EXPORTING AN ISLAMIC REVOLUTION" . Wilson Center. 1999. Retrieved 18 May 2022 .
^ "التعرف على جثة امر لواء زينبيون الايراني الذي قتل في سوريا بنيران داعش الارهابي قبل عامين" [Identification of the body of the order of the Iranian Zainabiyoun Brigade, who was killed in Syria by ISIS terrorist fire two years ago]. IraqNewspaper.net (in Arabic). 12 June 2019.
^ a b "Iran recruits Pakistani Shias for combat in Syria" . The Express Tribune . 11 December 2015. Cite error: The named reference "recruits" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page ).
^ a b c d Cite error: The named reference iraqeye
was invoked but never defined (see the help page ).
^ a b c d e "Meet the Zainebiyoun Brigade: An Iranian Backed Pakistani Shia Militia Fighting in Syria" . Archived from the original on 2 May 2016. Retrieved 28 April 2016 .
^ a b Cite error: The named reference Farhan Zahid
was invoked but never defined (see the help page ).
^ a b c "Funeral Service for Seven Pakistani Militants Killed in Syria; Qom, Iran, Apr 2015" . Konflictcam . 20 April 2015.
^ "Increasing Number Of Afghans, Pakistanis Killed In Syria Buried In Iran" . Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty . 25 April 2015.
^ "The Zainabiyoun Brigade" . پایگاه خبری تحلیلی فردا | Farda News . Farda News. 3 March 2016.
^ جهان|TABNAK, سایت خبری تحلیلی تابناك|اخبار ایران و. "پیکر ۵ شهید مدافع حرم در قم تشییع شد" . {{cite web }}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link ) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link )
^ Alex Vatanka , Influence of iranian revolution in Pakistan: Security, Diplomacy Islamist Influence , I.B.Tauris (1989), pp. 148 & 155
^ Julius, Anthony (1 May 2015). Trials of the Diaspora: A History of Anti-Semitism in England . OUP Oxford. ISBN 978-0-19-929705-4 – via Google Books .
^ Michael, Robert; Rosen, Philip (1 May 2015). Dictionary of Antisemitism from the Earliest Times to the Present . Scarecrow Press. ISBN 9780810858688 – via Google Books.
^ a b c d e f Wigger, Leo (26 September 2019). " "Why Pakistan holds a key in the Iranian-Saudi confrontation" " . magazine.zenith.me . Retrieved 1 October 2019 .
^ a b c d Christoph Reuter. American Fury: The Truth About the Russian Deaths in Syria: Hundreds of Russian soldiers are alleged to have died in U.S. airstrikes at the beginning of February. Reporting by DER SPIEGEL shows that events were likely very different. Der Spiegel , 2 March 2018.
^ Robillard, Michael (2021). "Syria". In Paul Burke; Doaa' Elnakhala; Seumas Miller (eds.). Global Jihadist Terrorism: Terrorist Groups, Zones of Armed Conflict and National Counter-Terrorism Strategies . Northampton: Edward Elgar Publishing. pp. 167–187. ISBN 978-1-80037-129-3 .
^ a b Drums Of War: Israel And The "AXIS OF RESISTANCE" (PDF) , International Crisis Group, 2 August 2010, archived from the original (PDF) on 4 March 2016
^ "Pakistan bans Iran-backed Shiite group fighting in Syria" . 11 April 2024. Retrieved 11 April 2024 .
^ a b "After ISIS, Fatemiyoun Vows to Fight with "Axis of Resistance" to Destroy Israel" . Middle East Institute . Archived from the original on 16 July 2020. Retrieved 23 July 2020 .
^ Will Fulton, Joseph Holliday, and Sam Wyer, Iranian Strategy in Syria Archived 2016-02-01 at the Wayback Machine , Institute for the Study of War , May 2013
^ Kajjo, Sirwan (25 August 2016). "Who are the Turkey backed Syrian Rebels?" . Voice of America . Archived from the original on 19 February 2017. Retrieved 19 February 2017 .
^ Mehdi Hussain (13 December 2015). "At least 23 killed, 30 injured in Parachinar blast" . The Express Tribune .
^ Ali, Imtiaz (17 May 2024). "Men held for street crime part of sectarian killing network: Karachi CTD" . DAWN.COM .
^ Golovnina, Maria (14 July 2013). "Pakistan Taliban set up camps in Syria, join anti-Assad war" . Reuters. Archived from the original on 14 July 2013. Retrieved 14 July 2013 .
^ Wali, Ahmed (12 July 2013). "BBC News – Pakistan Taliban 'sets up a base in Syria' " . Bbc.co.uk. Archived from the original on 3 June 2018. Retrieved 14 July 2013 .
^ "Pakistan Taliban set up camps in Syria, join anti-Assad war" . Al Arabiya . 14 July 2013. Archived from the original on 18 July 2013. Retrieved 14 July 2013 .
^ Says, Motorhead (28 October 2016). "IRGC commander killed on eve of Aleppo battle | FDD's Long War Journal" . www.longwarjournal.org .
^ "Array of pro-Syrian government forces advances in Aleppo | FDD's Long War Journal" . www.longwarjournal.org . 9 December 2016.
^ Truzman, Joe (14 February 2020). "IRGC trained militias suffer losses in northwest Syria" . Long War Journal . Retrieved 26 August 2021 .
^ "Limited Iranian-backed Pakistani fighters in Iraq to fight against ISIL in Iraq. But this is not a sign that Tehran lacks an interest in Iraqi affairs" . November 2018.
^ Misto, Mohamad; Emre Özcan, Ethem. "Iran boosting Yemeni Houthis with Syrian fighters: Local sources" . Anadolu Agency . Retrieved 8 May 2021 .
^ "Kashmir – The New Battlefield For Saudi-Iran Proxy War – Israel Media Reports" . 22 July 2019. Retrieved 29 August 2021 .
^ "Liwa Zainebiyoun" .
^ Cite error: The named reference WOTR
was invoked but never defined (see the help page ).
^ "Pakistan reluctant to take back fighters captured in Syria" . Hindustan Times . 30 July 2021. Retrieved 29 April 2022 .