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Sunni Militants in Iran: Activities, Ideological Sources and Political Strategies

Author Affiliations

  • 1 Hoshang Noraiee Taught International Political Economy-University of Westminster, London, UNITED KINGDOM

Int. Res. J. Social Sci., Volume 4, Issue (3), Pages 79-87, March,14 (2015)

Abstract

In this article the activities, ideological and strategic characters of militant Sunni groups in Southeast Iran will be investigated. It will be argued that their ability to survive and their capacity for popularity and action, to a large extent, is associated with strong sense of alienation among the Sunnis in the area, as well as their ethnic and religious networks which exist across borders. These factors have strengthened their positions in the wake of turbulent conditions in adjacent countries, particularly in Pakistan and Afghanistan. The militant groups in the area are not homogeneous and vary from quietists and ethnic-religious nationalists to sectarian and global-oriented Jihadists. Nearly all these militants in the marginal corner of Southeast Iran have adopted a strong anti-Shia approach, which was influenced politically and ideologically by radical Deobandis as well as Wahabbis and Salafists. Their strategies have shifted overtime but mostly focused on near enemy. With serious threats imposed by ISIS along western borders, the Shia regime in Iran has become more aware of the dimension of problems in Southeast Iran, particularly the area of Sistan and Baluchistan

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