The Islamic Resistance in Iraq is behind an attack that killed three American soldiers in Jordan on Sunday, a White House spokesman said on Wednesday, according to AFP.

“Our intelligence services have ample evidence that (this attack) was carried out by a group called the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, a combination of fighters from pro-Iranian armed groups that ‘include’ the Hezbollah Brigades, an influential pro-Iranian group. armed group of the Iranian military in Iraq, National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said at a press conference.

But he refused to place specific responsibility for the attack on the Hezbollah Brigades, which announced on Tuesday that it was “suspending” its military operations against US forces.

Sunday’s drone strike targeted a US logistics base in the middle of the Jordanian desert on the border with Iraq and Syria. According to the American military, three people died and dozens were injured.

On Tuesday, John Kirby said it was “possible” that the United States would respond to the attack in a “phased” manner, “potentially with multiple actions.”

The United States has suffered numerous strikes on positions in the Middle East since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas, but had not suffered any casualties in the attack until Sunday.

• Read also: Iraq: What pro-Iranian armed groups are operating against Washington?

Several armed groups

The attack in Jordan shares the same modus operandi as missile attacks and drone strikes launched since mid-October against US and international coalition soldiers fighting the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group in Iraq and Syria.

Illustrating the explosive regional context, these attacks – 165 in total – are the result of the war in Gaza between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas, which has been ongoing since 7 October.

Most of them have been claimed by the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, a group of militants from pro-Iranian groups who say they are acting in solidarity with the Palestinians and are demanding the withdrawal of the 2,500 US troops deployed as part of the coalition.

In response, Washington targeted the Hezbollah Brigades and al-Nujaba, two groups it says are involved in the Resistance, including the Sayed al-Shuhada Brigades.

Classified as “terrorists” by Washington, the groups claim to be part of an “axis of resistance” along with Lebanon’s Hezbollah, Yemen’s Houthi rebels and Hamas.

According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, they also have fighters participating in the conflict in Syria on their behalf, in support of the regime.

On Tuesday night, Hezbollah’s brigades announced that they were “suspending” their military operations against American forces after threats of retaliation by the United States “to avoid any problems for the Iraqi government.”

What is their origin?

These groups are officially affiliated with Hashd al-Shaabi – Popular Mobilization – a coalition of former paramilitary groups formed in June 2014 to support Iraqi forces against the Islamic State.

It was created in response to a fatwa issued by Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, Iraq’s top Shiite religious authority, calling for “jihad” against the Islamic State. In 2016, by order of the Prime Minister, a law was adopted on the integration of the Hashdu into the regular forces.

Hashd contributed to Iraq’s defeat of IS in 2017, backed by an anti-jihadist coalition led by Washington.

It drew its strength from Shiite armed groups that fought against American forces after the 2003 invasion.

During the war against the Islamic State, the new armed groups were created and trained by Iranian General Qassem Soleimani, a high-ranking commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, who was killed in a US strike in Baghdad in January 2020.

Hashd currently consists of dozens of groups and approximately 160,000+ members. Neither the government nor the organization discloses the number of participants.

Over the years, several leaders have emerged. In particular, Abu Mehdi al-Muhandis, a former dissident who previously found refuge in Iran and who was the Iraqi lieutenant of Qassem Soleimani. He was killed along with Kasem Suleimani.

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