Tens of thousands of militiamen scattered across the Middle East.
After the deadly attack on an American logistics base in Jordan, Joe Biden announced reprisals against pro-Iran armed groups.
Unofficial militias have operated in the region for years, shielding Iraq and Iran from direct blame.
A nebula of groups has formed in the Middle East, from Iran to the Mediterranean coast of Lebanon, a system soberly called "the axis of resistance".
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“Iran uses these groups to indirectly confront the Americans,” notes geopolitical scientist Simon Berger, who assures that “Iran manages to mobilize militias throughout the Middle East by relying on internal tensions.”
The Revolutionary Guards, Iranian Shiites, are behind a vast network of more or less independent groups that they bring together particularly around hatred of Sunni Muslims.
The Revolutionary Guards, at the helm of the “axis of resistance”
The Revolutionary Guards have three enemies: Sunnism, “little Satan” (Israel), and “big Satan” (United States).
Western powers fear the influence of the group, subdivided, scattered and powerful.
It would bring together 125,000 militiamen in the region.
“It’s truly a state within a state.
They support all movements that resist Israel, they supply and train other groups throughout the region,” explains the geopolitologist.
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From “Ramazan” in Iraq to the “Rasulallah” of the Arabian Peninsula via the “Levant Corps” in Syria, Lebanon or Jordan and the “Ansar Corps” in Afghanistan and Pakistan, the nebula extends over a long area of 3,500 km.
At the helm is the “Al-Quds force”, which acts as coordinator and has significant expertise in explosives, ballistics and intelligence.
The goal is to create a land corridor between Iran and the Mediterranean Sea, on the Lebanese side.
An arm of almost 2,500 km which would pass through Iraq, Jordan and Syria - enough to control the entire region.
“The militarization of the Revolutionary Guards has increased.
Iran denies any involvement and it is difficult to prove, even if we know that it is well behind it,” explains Simon Berger.
Lebanese Hezbollah: the best armed
The Lebanese political party is the main ally of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Created by the Revolutionary Guards in the 1980s, its objective has always been to fight against the Israeli presence in southern Lebanon.
In 2000, the group pushed back Tel Aviv's forces.
Hezbollah reportedly possesses an arsenal of 100,000 to 130,000 missiles and rockets, making it the most armed non-state group in the world.
“We estimate their numbers at 25,000 – 45,000 fighters,” estimates Simon Berger.
They have already fought Daesh, they have won military victories.
Israel fears that Hezbollah would launch an offensive, it would undoubtedly lose, but it has a significant capacity to cause harm.”
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Hezbollah is a major player in the conflict that has ravaged the region since the fall.
Its leader, Hassan Nasrallah, hides neither his hatred for Israel nor his support for Iran.
Iranians praise the group's ability to have infiltrated the politics of an entire country.
The “Islamic Resistance in Iraq”: Shiism versus Sunnism
Born after the war in Iraq in the early 2000s, the Islamic Resistance in Iraq is also very present in Syria.
An integral part of the war against Sunnism in the Middle East, it also fights against the American presence in the region.
Since 2023, it has launched rockets and drones at American bases in Iraq and Syria.
She is also monitored by the United States, which suspects her of being behind the recent attack in Jordan, near the Syrian border.
Since the start of the Israel-Hamas conflict, the group has claimed responsibility for 20 attacks against US forces in the two countries.
“There was no retaliation but that raises fears of a conflagration, or in any case a stronger explosion,” deplores the geopolitologist.
The Houthis in the Red Sea
By threatening the Red Sea maritime corridor, which sees 40% of world trade, the Houthis are giving the West a hard time.
Established in Yemen, where Iran and Saudi Arabia clash through intermediary groups, the Houthis occupy a prominent place in the region.
“They have the power to disrupt international trade.
More and more shipping companies are choosing to no longer go through this, which adds around twenty days of travel time,” explains Simon Berger.