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Free Iraqi Army
Iraqi Sunni rebel group
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Free Iraqi Army (FIA; Arabic: الجيش العراقي الحر, romanized: Al-Jayš Al-‘Irāqī Al-Ḥurr) was an Iraqi rebel group formed in the western Sunni-majority provinces of Iraq from Iraqi supporters of the Free Syrian Army rebels fighting in the Syrian Civil War.[3] The group aimed to overthrow the Shia-dominated government of Iraq,[4] believing that they would gain support in this from Syria should the rebels be successful in overthrowing Bashar al-Assad.[5][6] An Iraqi counterterror spokesman denied this, saying that the name is merely being used by al-Qaeda in Iraq to "attract the support of the Iraqi Sunnis by making use of the strife going on in Syria."[7]
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Sunni Iraq| Free Iraqi Army | |
|---|---|
| الجيش العراقي الحر | |
The 1963-1991 flag of Iraq, used by the FIA. | |
| Dates of operation | 19 July 2012–1 August 2014 |
| Allegiance | Sunni Iraq |
| Motives | Establishment of a Sunni state in Iraq or Sunni overthrow of the Federal government of Iraq |
| Active regions | Iraq |
| Size | 2,500+[1] |
| Allies |  Naqshbandi Army GMCIR Anbar Tribal Council Free Syrian Army |
| Opponents |  Syria[2] Mukhtar Army Islamic State |
| Battles and wars | Iraqi insurgency (2011–2013) War in Iraq (2013–2017) |
| Website | https://www.facebook.com/freeiraqiarmypage |
Aside from Anbar Province, the FIA reportedly had a presence in Fallujah, along the Syrian border near the town of Al-Qaim, and in Mosul in the north of Iraq. A recruiting commander for the group told a reporter from The Daily Star newspaper in Lebanon that the group was opposed to both Al-Qaeda in Iraq and their opponents in the Sahwa militia. The same commander claimed that the group received financial support from cross-border tribal extensions and Sunni sympathizers in the Persian gulf states of Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE.[5]
On 4 February 2013, Wathiq al-Batat of the Shiite militant group Hezbollah in Iraq, announced the formation of the Mukhtar Army to fight against al-Qaeda and the Free Iraqi Army.[8] In August 2014, the group became defunct, after a large offensive by ISIL in northern Iraq, with activity on their websites ceasing.
History
Links to al-Qaeda and the Iraqi Ba'athists
Despite the group's denial of links to al-Qaeda, the group had been accused of being affiliated with the group.[9] These accusations of links with both al-Qaeda and the Ba'athists led to a Najaf Shiite figure associated with the State of Law Coalition issuing a fatwa against supplying the group with weapons.[10]
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