Kataeb Hezbollah Denies Membership of Suspect Charged in US Terror Plot Case

ERBIL (Kurdistan24) – The Iraqi armed group Kataeb Hezbollah on Monday denied that a man accused by US authorities of planning attacks in the United States and Europe is affiliated with the group.

The statement came after US prosecutors on Friday filed charges against Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood Al-Saadi, 32, who was identified in court documents as a senior figure linked to Kataeb Hezbollah, which Washington classifies as a terrorist organization.

In a statement, Kataeb Hezbollah’s security commander Abou Moujahed al-Assaf rejected the allegation, saying: “The abductee, Mohammaed Baqer al-Saadi does not belong to Kataeb Hezbollah.” However, he added that Saadi “will return to his country with his head held high, because he is among the lovers and supporters of the resistance.”

According to US court filings, Al-Saadi and unnamed associates are accused of planning, coordinating, and claiming responsibility for at least 18 attacks in Europe and two in Canada. These include a non-fatal stabbing of two Jewish men in London and arson attacks on synagogues in several countries. He is also alleged to have plotted attacks in the United States.

Al-Saadi appeared in a Manhattan court on Friday, where he was charged with six counts, including conspiracy to provide material support to Kataeb Hezbollah and Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

Kataeb Hezbollah is part of the broader umbrella network known as the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, which has carried out hundreds of attacks against US forces and interests in Iraq and the region in recent years. Those attacks reportedly paused following a ceasefire announced in April.

Last month, the US State Department announced a reward of up to $10 million for information on the group’s leader, Ahmad al-Hamidawi.