There is a history of cooperation between Iran and al-Qaeda, the contemporary head of jihadism before its leader Zawahiri was eliminated, but we must understand this cooperation carefully. In previous decades, al-Qaeda leaders trained in Iran on the use of explosives, received advice and training from Hezbollah in Lebanon, and before the 9/11 attacks, a number of al-Qaeda planners traveled through Iranian territory. We must remember that al-Qaeda forces have fought with Iran-backed groups in various parts of the Middle East, such as Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen, and many members have resentment toward Iran.
Many reports indicate that Iran provided intelligence to al-Qaeda in some cases, especially after the US occupation of Iraq, where Iranian efforts contributed to strengthening al-Qaeda and the Islamic State in Iraq, led by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. The interests of both sides converged until Iran succeeded in presenting its credentials with the Syrian regime by fighting these radical Sunni organizations.
Let’s not forget that Dr. Ayman al-Zawahiri’s nickname was “The Dweller of Zahedan.” Zahedan is an Iranian city where al-Zawahiri was hiding before he was exposed, and when ISIS and al-Nusra fought, Abu Muhammad al-Adnani, the ISIS spokesperson at the time, exposed al-Zawahiri and al-Qaeda’s relationship with Iran.
Iran and the Islamic State (ISIS) are ostensibly adversaries, but the ideological differences have helped Iran mobilize its popular constituency. ISIS considers all Shiites to be apostates who must be killed to pave the way for a purer form of Islam, while Iran considers ISIS to be a fanatical terrorist group against the Ahl al-Bayt and Islam. Iran considers ISIS to be a terrorist group that is a propagandist against the Ahl al-Bayt and Islam.
There has been a back-and-forth on the issue of military intervention since the beginning of the Syrian conflict in 2011, with Iran supporting the Syrian regime against its opponents, under the pretext of course: ISIS.
Iran also provided assistance to Iraq in the fight against ISIS, deploying its forces in Iraq and occupying it by establishing the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF).
Despite reports of cooperation between the United States and Iran in the fight against ISIS, both countries have worked to exploit these jihadist groups for their own benefit.
From the war in Afghanistan to the present day, every day these jihadist groups emerge under the pretext of supporting Islam and Sunnah, they are a destructive tool in the hands of the enemies of Sunnah, and whenever Iran wants to confront the international community, it brings out ISIS and then applies for a contract to fight it.
Thus, it appears that the Sunnis are destined to be Iran’s plaything, exploited for its benefit through the jihadists, while they are lost in side issues that do not matter.
Hopefully, Sunni Muslims will wake up and realize that the solution is not in servile and functional jihadist movements, but in building a real strong state, a real strong society, and a free, democratic and secular people, which prevents the exploitation of religion through radical organizations whose every move serves the interests of the enemies of Muslims and Sunnis.
Can all Islamist theorists tell us what benefit these jihadist movements have had on the Sunnis?
Have these terrorist organizations been able to protect the Sunnis, or help them advance even one step, whether politically or economically?
Or were these organizations the greatest reason for breaking the heads of the Sunnis in the region, labeling them all as terrorists, and then monopolizing the state by Iran and its proxies and by tyrannical rulers.
ISIS and Al-Qaeda have been able to provide great services to Iran that it could not have dreamed of, and these organizations were able to turn the American support for them since the Cold War into a conflict that they were not prepared for, but the birth of the organizations brought two teams against the Sunni people in the region, not only in Syria:
The first team: Foreign occupation, whether on the Taliban or Iraq.
The second team: Tyrannical regimes that reject secularism and the rule of law and kill the homelands under the pretext of these organizations that serve both sides.
Isn’t it time for the Sunnis to wake up and reject these organizations that have torn their veils and made them vulnerable to every occupier and tyrant?
The mind that sees these organizations and their danger and continues to support them is a mind that deserves every calamity that befalls it!
Will the Sunnis wake up and choose to build a secular and democratic Syrian state and kick with their feet all those organizations and their malicious ideas that exploit religion?
Will the Sunnis in Syria wake up and know that Bashar al-Assad rejoices in every sharia class where loyalty and innocence are taught, without a curriculum for building a free and just state?
Will Sunnis wake up and realize that we are five centuries beyond the seventh century AD and that political concepts have changed, while the concepts of those organizations that want us to live outside the era and reality have not and will not change?
Will we continue to be Iran’s plaything in Syria, moving us as it wishes for its benefit, and drugging us with these miserable organizations?
Farhad Roknuddin
Independent researchers
Syrian Future Movement
References:
(1) Rival Islamic States: ISIS v Iran | Wilson Center. https://www.wilsoncenter.org/article/rival-islamic-states-isis-v-iran-0.
(2) Iran terror blast highlights success – and growing risk – of ISIS-K. …. https://theconversation.com/iran-terror-blast-highlights-success-and-growing-risk-of-isis-k-regional-strategy-220586.
(3) Why Are Al Qaeda Leaders in Iran? | Foreign Affairs. https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/afghanistan/2021-02-11/why-are-al-qaeda-leaders-iran.
(4) Iran’s Ties to Al-Qaeda – The Heritage Foundation. https://www.heritage.org/sites/default/files/2021-02/FS_198.pdf.
(5) Newly Released Bin Laden Document Describes Iran, Al-Qaeda Link – NBC News. https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/newly-released-bin-laden-document-describes-iran-al-qaeda-link-n816681.
(6) Unlikely Alliance: Iran’s Secretive Relationship with Al-Qaeda. https://www.brookings.edu/articles/unlikely-alliance-irans-secretive-relationship-with-al-qaeda/.
(7) https://www.france24.%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AF%D9%88%D9%84%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A5%D8%B3%D9%84%D8%A7%D9%85%D9%8A%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B9%D8%B1%D8%A7%D9%82-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B4%D8%A7%D9%85-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B9%D8%AF%D9%86%D8%A7%D9%86%D9%8A-%D8%AC%D8%A8%D9%87%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%86%D8%B5%D8%B1%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%82%D8%A7%D8%B9%D8%AF AF%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B8%D9%88%D8%A7%D9%87%D8%B1%D9%8A
