| League of the Partisans عصبة الأنصار Osbat al-Ansar | |
| Dates: | 1994–present |
| Leader: | Hisham Shreidi (1986–1991) Ahmed Abd al-Karim al-Saadi (1991–1999) Abu Tarek al-Saadi (1999–2023) |
| Motives: | The creation of an Islamic state in Lebanon |
| Area: | Lebanon |
| Ideology: | Salafi Islamism Jihadism Sunni Islamism |
| Crimes: | 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 |
| Strength: | <2000 members |
Osbat al-Ansar or Asbat an-Ansar ("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, which claims professing the Salafi form of Islam and the overthrow of the Lebanese-dominated secular government.[1] [2]
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]
According to the Australian Government and the Canadian Government the goal of Osbat al-Ansar is "the establishment of a radical Islamic state in Lebanon." as well as "Overthrowing the Lebanese government and preventing what they perceive as anti-Sunni Islamic influences in Lebanon".[12] [13]
The group professes the Salafi form of Islam.[1] [2]
According to Seymour Hersh, Osbat el-Ansar has received arms and supplies from Lebanese internal-security forces and militias associated with the Siniora government.[14]
Asbat al-Ansar first emerged in the early 1990s. In the mid-1990s, the group assassinated Lebanese religious leaders and bombed nightclubs, theaters, and liquor stores. One of those assassinated was Nizar al-Halabi - leader of the Sufi Al-Ahbash - on 31 August 1995.[15] The group has also plotted against foreign diplomatic targets. In October 2004, Mahir al-Sa’di, a member of Asbat al-Ansar, was sentenced in absentia to life imprisonment for his 2000 plot to assassinate then-U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon David Satterfield. Asbat al-Ansar has no formal ties to the AQ network, but the group shares AQ's ideology and has publicly proclaimed its support for al-Qa’ida in Iraq. Members of the group have traveled to Iraq since 2005 to fight Coalition Forces. Asbat al-Ansar has been reluctant to involve itself in operations in Lebanon due in part to concerns over losing its safe haven in the Ain al-Hilwah refugee camp. AAA did not stage any known attacks in 2012.[16]
In 2002, a representative of Osbat al-Ansar handed over Badieh Hamadeh, a Shiite living in Ain al-Hilweh suspected of killing three Lebanese soldiers, to Lebanese authorities. A spokesman for Osbat al-Ansar stated that the decision to make the hand over was to "spare the camp any bloodshed".[17]
In 2001, Daniel Ahmad Samarji, and Bilal Ali Othman, were arrested in the northern city of Tripoli for planning terrorist acts, illegal dealing in weapons of war and discharging firearms.[18]