Iran and the Islamic State

Iran is an opponent of Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS, Arabic: داعش),^[a] fighting the group in Syria and Iraq. Proxy conflicts have also occurred in other regions such as Egypt (Islamic State – Sinai Province) and spillover into Gaza.

Iran's military action against ISIS

In Syria

See also: Iranian support for Syria in the Syrian Civil War

Since the start of the Syrian Civil War in 2011, Iran supported Assad's Syrian Arab Republic against its opponents, including ISIS.^[1]

In Iraq

Main article: Iranian intervention in Iraq (2014–present)

Further information: Operation Ashura, Siege of Amirli, Battle of Baiji (October–November 2014), Battle of Baiji (2014–15), and Second Battle of Tikrit (March–April 2015)

Iran was the first country^[2] to pledge assistance to Iraq to fight ISIS, deploying troops in early June 2014 following the North Iraq offensive.^[3][4]

President of Iraq Fuad Masum has praised Iran as "the first country to provide weapons to Iraq to fight against the ISIS Takfiri terrorists".^[5]

Iran's Quds Force is a "key player" in the military intervention against ISIS^[6] and its "mastermind" commander Major General Qasem Soleimani maintained a frequent presence in Iraq while his pictures in the battlefield were regularly published.^[7][8]

Iran–Iraq border

In 14 March 2016, two ISIS cells equipped with explosive devices were eliminated near the border by the Ground Forces of Islamic Republic of Iran Army.^[9]

Iran's political stance

Foreign Affairs Minister of Iran Javad Zarif has described ISIS as an "ideological sibling" to Al-Qaeda, adding "the so-called Islamic State, is neither Islamic nor a state".^[10]

Supreme Leader of Iran Ali Khamenei has openly commented on the American-led intervention in Iraq and the Combined Joint Task Force:

On the issue of DAESH (ISIS), they formed a coalition. Of course, they are lying and this is a hypocritical act. They wrote a letter to our Ministry of Foreign Affairs saying, "If you say that America gives weapons to DAESH, this is a lie and we are not supporting them". Well, a short time after that, the photos which showed that America gives weapons to DAESH were published.^[11]

Designation as "terrorist"

Iranian official and semi-official media outlets such as state-run Iran Daily,^[12] and IRGC-tied news agencies Fars^[13] and Tasnim^[14] frequently call ISIS as "terrorist organization" and "Takfiri".

The deputy secretary of Supreme National Security Council has also called it "terrorist group".^[15]

Condemnation of harms to others

ISIS attacks and threats to Iran

See also: ISIL territorial claims

While Iran is a Shia-dominant country, ISIS is ideologically anti-Shia and regards Shias as infidels, having killed thousands of them. After rapidly expanding in Iraq, ISIS became a threat only kilometers away from Iranian western borders. With the Pakistan-based Sunni Jihadist groups in eastern Iran and an ongoing Sistan and Baluchestan insurgency, some alarmed the possibility of a wider backlash there.^[16]

Iran threatened ISIS that managing to attack Baghdad or holy shrines of Shia Imams and getting close to Iran-Iraq border is "over the red lines" and if they are crossed, Iran will engage in a direct action.^[17]

In September 2014, Iranian paper Islamic Republican quoted Hadana news reporting "ISIS designated Emir for Iran and several of his aides were arrested by security bodies". The report did not name the Emir, and did not say if they had been able to sneak into Iran or arrested abroad. Neither did it mention the security bodies of which country have made the arrest.^[18]

In the same month, Minister of Interior Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli announced Iran has arrested several suspected members of ISIS trying to enter Iran. He said that two or three of them have confessed "entering Iran has been among the plans of the ISIS" and dismissed the reports on the ISIS move to recruit members inside Iran, despite noting "this does not mean that the group has not launched a publicity campaign for recruitment".^[14]

On 29 January 2015, ISIS announced a new province called Wilayat Khorasan consisting of Afghanistan, Pakistan, and "other nearby lands". Hafiz Saeed Khan was designated as Emir of the province. Pakistani Hafiz Saeed Khan, also known as Mulla Saeed Orakzai, is a former member of the Taliban.^[19]

On 7 June 2017, ISIS claimed responsibility for an attack on the Iranian Parliament and the mausoleum of Ayatollah Khomeini.^[20] The attack was confirmed to have left 16 dead and was the first instance of an ISIS attack within Iran's borders. There are worries about the implications of this attack on President Hassan Rouhani's "moderation project".^[21]

Ahvaz military parade attack happened on 22 September 2018, a military parade was attacked by armed gunmen in the southwestern Iranian city of Ahvaz.^[22][23] The shooters killed 25 people, including soldiers of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and civilian bystanders.^[24]

On 3 January 2024, ISIS claimed responsibility for the Kerman bombings incident that killed nearly 100 Iranian civilians at Qasem Soleimani's burial site.^[25]

Iranian citizens and ISIS

Tehran Bureau reports a popular support on Iran's military action against ISIS.^[26]

According to Al Jazeera, as of January 2015 "hundreds" of Iranian Sunni Kurds have crossed the Iran-Iraq border to fight ISIS, mostly joining Iraqi Kurdistan fighters also known as Peshmerga.^[27]

Several research works and polls conducted by a security body in Iran have shown that Iran's Sunni community "are not interested in membership in the ISIS".^[18] However, Erbil-based website Rudaw cites a Facebook post from the One ISIS page saying that in October 2014, 23 Kurds from Iran had joined the group. Kurdish activist Mokhtar Hoshmand has claimed "20 Iranian Kurdish members of ISIS have been killed and 30 have been injured".^[28]

Axis of Resistance

Further information: Axis of Resistance and Axis of Resistance § Islamic State

The "Axis of Resistance" is a Western exonym for a set of militant factions in nearby Arab States allegedly allied to Iran. Some of these have come into conflict with ISIS affiliates or sympathisers. Israel, an opponent of Iran, has also armed opposing proxies, some of which have alleged links to ISIS.

2025

In June 2025, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Israel was arming the Popular Forces, a Rafah-based group led by Yasser Abu Shabab, during the Gaza war. The Popular Forces have been linked to IS; some of its prominent figures have been identified as former IS militants who fought in the Sinai insurgency.^[29][30][31] Abu Shabab has denied any collaboration with Israel or connections to IS.^[32][33] The researcher and analyst Aymenn Jawad Al-Tamimi disputed claims that the Popular Forces are affiliated with IS; he argued that their use of the Palestinian flag in their logo and uniforms would be unacceptable to IS even as a disguise, and that collaboration with Israel constitutes apostasy from Islam from IS's perspective.^[34]

Israeli prime minister Netentahu has reluctantly admitted to arming anti-Hamas factions in the Gaza Stripi.^[35] Allegations were raised by Avigdor Lieberman and Netentahu's response was to say, "Israel is working to defeat Hamas in various ways".^[36] Some took this as confirmation of the story.^[35] Only one of the recipient groups has been publicly identified. Led by Yasser Abu Shebab. His family responded by disowning him, and dating that they wanted him assassinated.^[35] A similar reaction to the families of Gazans who conducted suicide bombings against Hamas, in sympathy with ISIS. Yasser Abu Shabab was previously imprisoned by Hamas for criminal offences.^[37] but escaped when Gaza's prison was bombed.^[38] The move was criticised because previously Netentahu supported an anti-PLO group, Hamas, who eventually allied with factions of the PLO against Israel during the second intifada.^[35] Leila Molana-Allen, said there has been no evidence of Hamas attacking aid convoys.^[35] She added that there was no evidence the groups being armed were loyal Israel.^[35] Allen also said that the Israel-supported militants had previously admitted that the aid being looted previously was "for their fighters".^[35] Several months previously, in November 2024 a Hamas government spokesperson said that their security forces had killed twenty looters with links to ISIS.^[39]