Asaib Ahl al-Haq (League of the Righteous) is one of Iraq's most powerful Iran-backed militias, headed by Qais al-Khazali. It grew out of the Shia Muslim insurgency against American-led coalition forces after the 2003 invasion.
In recent years the militia has turned to business and government, raking in a fortune through state procurement contracts and the energy industry. It backs one of Iraq's biggest political blocs and al-Khazali is a kingmaker in parliament.
Asaib has taken control of Iraq's education ministry, turning campuses into ideological factories for its movement and recruitment grounds for its militia. Top engineering students are siphoned into its drone programme. Pro-militia student unions receive lavish funding. Higher grades are bought through connections to the party. Faculty posts are handed to loyalists, and debate among Iraq's gregarious youth is stifled. Iraq's universities were once among the finest in the Middle East; their reputation has begun to sink fast.
During the 12-day war between Israel and Iran in 2025, the group kept quiet, insisting it had no wish to drag Iraq into another war.
Why be a man when you can be a success?