Jund al-Islam

Jund al-Islam was a Kurdish Islamist militant organization that was established in September 2001 and was led by Abdullah Shafi. The group was formed by the merger of the Second Soran Unit (SSU) and the Al-Tawhid Islamic Front (TIF), the latter of which was created when Kurdish Hamas and Tawhid had merged in July 2001. The formation of Jund al-Islam was encouraged and financially supported by Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden. At the group’s inception, roughly 60 of Jund al-Islam’s estimated 400 fighters were trained by Al-Qaeda operatives in Afghanistan. In the autumn of 2001, Jund al-Islam clashed with the Islamic Movement of Kurdistan (IMK) and eventually gained control of the Howraman region of Iraq. Around the same time, Jund al-Islam signed a ceasefire agreement with Ali Bapir’s Islamic group, after which the two organizations coordinated with one another. Later in 2001, Jund al-Islam joined with Mullah Krekar’s Reformist Group to form Ansar al-Islam.