Topic: Ansar Al Sunna

Ansar al-Sunnah or Jamaat Ansar al-Sunnah or Group of the Followers of Sunnah (faith) (Arabic: جماعة أنصار السنه‎) , (formerly Jaish Ansar al-Sunna, or "Army of the Followers of the Sunna") is a militant salafi group in Iraq that is fighting the U.S.-led occupation and the elected government led by Nouri al-Maliki. The group is based in northern and central Iraq, and includes both Kurdish and Arab Sunnis as well as foreign fighters. The group was founded in September 2003 as an umbrella organization for guerrillas, with former members of Ansar al-Islam a Kurdish Islamic organization based in the mountains near Halabja in northeastern Iraq before the U.S-led invasion, at its core. This date coincides with the first released message from the group stating their existence, on September 20. Their goal is to expel U.S. occupation forces from Iraq. The group's leader has been identified Abu Abdullah al-Hassan bin Mahmoud, who is believed to be the brother of a major Ansar al-Islam fighter, although his background is unclear.

Ansar al-Sunna is thought to have links with other Islamic organizations operating in Iraq including, the formerly Abu Musab al-Zarqawi backed, Jama'at al-Tawhid wal-Jihad (al-Qaeda in Iraq). In October 2004 Ansar al-Sunna released a video beheading of a Turkish truck driver on its website. The kidnappers on the video identified themselves as members of al-Tawhid wal-Jihad (Source: MERIA). Initially the United States and Iraqi Interim governments reportedly linked Ansar al-Sunna to al-Qaeda. However a letter intercepted by the American military in January 2007 exposes violent conflict between the two groups.

Following the twin Sunni and Shiite uprisings of the spring and summer of 2004, and the subsequent decrease in U.S patrols and the creation of "no-go" areas in the Sunni Triangle, Ansar al-Sunna was believed to be part of a loose coalition of insurgent groups (also including guerrillas from Mohammad's Army and al-Tawhid wal-Jihad) controlling the Sunni cities of Fallujah, Ramadi, Samarra, and Baquba (U.S. offensives later largely wrested control from Baquba, Fallujah, and Samarra, although underground guerrilla resistance forces still have a strong presence in those cities).