Iranian insurgent groups maintain Baluch threat

IHS Jane's Intelligence Review

01 January 2015

 

 

 A series of images released by Harakat Ansar Iran's (HAI) Arabic language website showing the group's militants undergoing training in an unspecified location, allegedly in Iran's Sistan-Baluchistan province. The group has since changed its name to Harkat ul-Ansar. Source: HAI

Key Points

• Since the death of its founding leader in 2010, the Iranian insurgent group Jondollah has splintered.
• These splinter groups have experienced a resurgence and now present a more serious threat than Jondollah itself.
• Despite ongoing high casualties, the insurgency is likely to maintain momentum if safe havens in neighbouring countries remain open.

Armed opposition to the Islamic Republic of Iran has a long history in Baluchistan. Jondollah (Army of God) was the original insurgent group; it was established on 20 April 2003, although it only started its armed struggle in 2005. The group suffered a serious blow when its founder and leader, Abdolmalek Rigi (alias Abdul Malik Baluchi), was arrested and then hanged by the Iranian state in 2010.
Since then, Jondollah's activities have been in decline because of a series of internal splits. The group is led by Muhammad Zahir Baluch, who was born in 1979 in Sistan. A high school graduate with a past in smuggling from 2003-07, he joined Jondollah in 2008, first as group commander and then as a deputy to Rigi, whom he then replaced after Rigi's arrest.
Since Rigi's death, Jondollah's activities have been in decline because of a series of internal splits. Between 2011 and 2014, three other groups emerged. Harakat Ansar Iran, subsequently renamed Harkat ul-Ansar but keeping the acronym HAI, was formed on 16 June 2011. It is currently led by Hassan Khan Baluch, who was born in Zahidan in 1976. He has been involved in smuggling activities since 1999. Baluch joined Jondollah in 2008, but left in 2010 and lived in the United Arab Emirates, from where he returned with funds to start his own group.
Jaish al-Adl (Army of Justice) was formed on 27 March 2013 and is currently led by Salahuddin Faruqi (alias Abdulrahim Mulazadeh), who was born in 1982 in Chabahar.
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