Pro-Government Militias
Liwa al-Youm al-Mawud (Promised Day Brigades) (Syria)
Basic Group Information
| Name assigned by coder: | no |
| PGM ID Number: | 547 |
| Country: | Syria |
| Date formed: | June 27, 2013 |
| Accuracy of date formed: | year |
| Details of Formation: | The Promised Day Brigades are an offshoot of the Iraqi Mahdi army led by Sadr. After Sadr had disbanded his army and turned it into a social and charitable network, the Promised Day Brigades represented the armed wing. In June 2013, sources report about the presence of Promised Day Brigades in Syria. |
| Date dissolved: | Unknown |
| Accuracy of date dissolved: | day |
| Details of Termination: | |
| Termination Type(s): | not terminated |
Former and Successor Group Information
| Predecessor group(s): | none |
| Successor group(s): | none |
| Private Military Company? | no |
| Former Group? | yes |
| Former Armed Group? | yes |
| Former Rebel Group? | no |
| Former Rebel Group UCDP ID: | none |
| PGM Becomes Rebel Group? | no |
| Successor Rebel Group UCDP ID: | none |
Government Relation, Support, and Training
| Government Relation: | unclear |
| Created by the Government?: | no | Main Creating Government Institution: | none |
| Government Link(s): | unclear |
| If link to party, name of party: | None |
| Training and Equipment: | no |
| Shared Information and Joint Operations: | no |
| Shared Personnel: | no |
| Type(s) of Material Support: | Foreign government; foreign support |
| State Sponsor(s): | Iran |
| Other Connection(s): | Iraqi cleric and militia leader Muqtada al-Sadr |
Group Characteristics
| Membership: | ethnic; religious; former rebels; foreign nationals |
| Primary Membership: | religious |
| Alternative Primary Membership: | no information |
| Location: | None |
| Force Strength: | [unknown, unknown] |
| Target(s): | rebels, insurgents, or other armed group; religious group |
| Purpose(s): | protect state, national or religious institutions; protect state, national or religious leader(s); intimidation of ethnic/religious groups; fight insurgents |
Ethnic Characteristics
| Ethnic Target(s): | Sunni Arabs (Syria) |
| Quality of Information for Ethnic Targeting: | given |
| Ethnic Membership: | Shi'a Arabs (Iraq) |
| Quality of Information for Ethnic Membership: | given |
| Ethnic Purpose: | Sunni Arabs (Syria) |
| Quality of Information for Ethnic Purpose: | inferred |
Other Information
| Other Information: | The sources do not explicitly mention a direct link to the Syrian regime. The group was included as PGM due to the similarities with other Iranian-backed Iraqi militias operating in Syria, which are reportedly pro-Assad. |
New Variables from Meta-Analysis
Purpose
| Purpose: | The main purpose of the group is to support the Syrian President Assad in the fights against Sunni rebels |
| Relative Benefit(s) of PGM Use | unknown |
Treatment of Civilians
| Treatment of Civilians: | |
| Type(s) of Violence against Civilians: | unknown |
Reasons for Membership
| PGM Members Coerced? | no information |
| PGM Members Paid? | no information |
| Reasons for Membership: | |
| PGM Members Killed? | no information |
PGM Size
| Size: |
Weapons and Training
| Weapons and Training: |
Organisation
| Organisation: | Members are sent to Syria at Iran’s covert directions. Iran uses the Brigades to support Bashar al-Assad with the help of Hadi al-Ameri, the Iraqi minister of transportation. |
Reference(s) for Meta-Analysis
Evidence
- Examine the evidence for this coding.