The Iraqi Hezbollah Brigades, a powerful armed faction with close ties to Iran, have ignored the U.S. sanctions imposed on the group due to attacks on American forces in Iraq and Syria, stating that such attacks aim to "deplete the enemy." On Friday, the United States imposed sanctions on several members of the Hezbollah Brigades and another Iranian-backed Shiite group and its secretary-general, accusing them of participating in attacks against the U.S. and its partners in Iraq and Syria.
The U.S. accuses Iran and its supported armed factions of carrying out over 60 attacks since mid-October, amid escalating tensions in the region due to the war between Israel and the Palestinian Hamas movement. At least 59 American soldiers were injured in these attacks, though all have returned to service.
Abu Ali al-Askari, the security official of the Hezbollah Brigades, described the sanctions as "ridiculous" in a statement on the Telegram app, stating that the measures would not affect the group's operations. The statement added that "delivering calculated strikes of the Islamic resistance in Iraq against enemies, inflicting losses among their ranks, destroying their vehicles, or distracting them is in line with the strategy of depleting the enemy in selecting the level of escalation of operations, their course, and timing."
Among those associated with Hezbollah Brigades targeted by the sanctions is a member of the group's main decision-making body and foreign affairs officer, as well as a military commander whom the Treasury Department stated works with the Iranian Revolutionary Guard to train fighters. The U.S. State Department has designated the Sayyid al-Shuhada Brigades and its secretary-general Abu Alaa al-Walai as specially designated global terrorists.
