Osbat al-Ansar
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Osbat al-Ansar or Asbat an-Ansar (Arabic: عصبة الأنصار, romanized: ʿUṣbat al-ʾAnṣār, "League of the Partisans") is a Sunni fundamentalist group established in the early 1990s, with a primary base of operations in the Palestinian camp of Ain al-Hilweh refugee camp near Sidon,[1] which claims professing the Salafi form of Islam and the overthrow of the Lebanese-dominated secular government.[1][2]
League of the Partisans عصبة الأنصار Osbat al-Ansar | |
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Leader | Hisham Shreidi (1986–1991) Ahmed Abd al-Karim al-Saadi (1991–1999) Abu Tarek al-Saadi (1999–present) |
Dates of operation | 1994–present |
Motives | The creation of an Islamic state in Lebanon |
Active regions | Lebanon |
Ideology | Salafi Islamism Jihadism Sunni Islamism |
Major actions | Assassinations, Bombings |
Status | Designated as a terrorist group by Australia, Bahrain, Kazakhstan, Russia, the United Arab Emirates, the United States, the United Kingdom and the United Nations |
It has been designated as a terrorist group by the Bahrain,[3] United Nations,[4] Canada,[5] Kazakhstan,[6] Russia,[7] the UAE,[8] the United Kingdom[9] and the United States. It is on the United States' list of terrorist organizations for alleged connections with Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda, and the American administration decided to freeze all assets of Osbat al-Ansar following the attacks on September 11th, 2001.[2][10] The group has reportedly received funding from Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.[1]
Osbat al-Ansar is also connected with fundamentalist groups Osbat al-Nour, Jund Ash Sham, the Dinniyeh Group and Takfir wal Hijra.[1] Ahmed Abd al-Karim al-Saadi is the ostensible leader of the group; however, since he went into hiding in 1999, the group has been led by his brother Abu Tarek al-Saadi.[1] Osbat al-Ansar is estimated to have less than 2000 members, mostly Lebanese, with a primary base of operations in the Ain al-Hilwah refugee camp near Sidon in southern Lebanon.[11]