[ONLINE] - Soleimani’s Shadow: The Fatemiyoun Division and Iranian Proxy Warfare Propaganda

Thousands of ethnic Afghan foreign fighters have fought and died with the Iranian-backed Fatemiyoun Division and Zeynabiyoun Brigade in Syria’s civil war over the last decade. They have been critical not only to Iran’s successful quest to restore Syrian President Bashar al Assad’s regime, but as an asset for Tehran in its competition with Israel and other rivals. Yet the role and impact of these units is not restricted to their impact on the battlefield. Instead, they are mobilized by and promoted through propaganda and other messaging efforts that aid in recruitment but also in signaling to the Iranian and and other populations, regional rivals, and the United States. In their new report, Soleimani’s Shadow: The Fatemiyoun Division and Iranian Proxy Warfare Propaganda, Candace Rondeaux, Amir Toumaj, and Arif Ammar draw upon the cultural production of the Fatemiyoun Division and its Iranian backers to examine the unit’s role and the role of its messaging. 

To discuss the report, New America welcomes the authors of the report: Candace Rondeaux, Director of Future Frontlines at New America; Amir Toumaj, co-author of the paper, co-founder of Resistance Axis Monitor, a site that provides analysis and coverage of Iran and its proxy groups, and a research and policy analyst with United Against a Nuclear Iran (UANI); and Arif Ammar, an independent researcher focused on conflict in Afghanistan. New America also welcomes Ali Alfoneh, senior fellow at the Arab Gulf States Institute and author of Political Succession in the Islamic Republic of Iran, and Ahmad Shuja Jamal, Director General for International Affairs and Regional Cooperation, Office of the National Security Council, Afghanistan.

Join the conversation online using #SoleimaniShadow and following @NewAmericaISP.

Speakers:

Amir Toumaj
Co-Author, Soleimani’s Shadow:The Fatemiyoun Division and Iranian Proxy Warfare Propaganda
Co-Founder, Resistance Axis Monitor

Arif Ammar
Co-Author, Soleimani’s Shadow:The Fatemiyoun Division and Iranian Proxy Warfare Propaganda

Ahmad Shuja Jamal
Director General for International Affairs and Regional Cooperation, Office of the National Security Council, Afghanistan

Ali Alfoneh
Senior Fellow, Arab Gulf States Institute
Author, Political Succession in the Islamic Republic of Iran

Moderator:

Candace Rondeaux
Director, Future Frontlines, New America
Professor of Practice, Arizona State University
Co-Author, Soleimani’s Shadow:The Fatemiyoun Division and Iranian Proxy Warfare Propaganda