![handle is hein.crs/crsmthaaaqe0001 and id is 1 raw text is: CRS Insights
The Khorasan Group in Syria
Christopher M. Blanchard, Specialist in Middle Eastern Affairs (cbla nchardacrs. Icgov, 7-0428)
Sepembr 24, 2014 (IN 10155)
On September 22, U.S. military forces launched strikes against Syria-based terrorists referred to by
U.S. officials as the Khorasan Group, whose members President Obama has described as seasoned
Al Qaeda oeratives in Syria According to Deputy National Security Advisor Ben Rhodes, the group
in rmer al ive, core al Qaeda operatives from Afghanistan and Pakistan [a
region historically known as Khorasan] who made their way to Syria. Rhodes added that the
Administration views the Khorasan Group as an extension of the threat posed by al Qaeda and their
associated forces. These are individuals who have their origin, their history serving in al Qaeda. Other
U.S. officials and independent observers report that the group's members may hold leadership roles in
the Al Qaeda-affiliated Syrian insurgent organization known as Jabhat al Nusra (the Support Front),
which the United States has designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO). Former CIA Deputy
Directorr ik e-Mr1 has described the Khorasan Group as the external operations arm of Jabhat al
Nusra, saying its members came from Pakistan and focus on attacks in the West. Despite this
reported affiliation, some observers believe the approximately 50 to 100membera of the Khorasan
Group focus primarily on planning international terrorist acts, rather than aiding Jabhat al Nusra's
efforts to topple the Asad regime.
Official accounts of the targets and purposes of some of the September 22 strikes correspond with
descriptions of the origins and intentions of the Khorasan Group ascribed in recent press reports to
unnamed U.S. officials. Unnamed U.S. officials told the New York Times on September 20 that an
experienced Al Qaeda operative named Muhsin al Fadhli served as a Khorasan Group leader until his
apparent death in the strikes. The U.S. government first named Al Fadhli as a Specially Designated
Global Terrorist in February 2005 in connection with his alleged financial and material support for the
network of Abu Musab al Zarqawi in Iraq and several Al Qaeda operations. According to Treasury
Department notices, Al Fadhli was based in Iran, where he allegedly directed a network that
transferred funding and fighters to Syria and to and from South Asia. A 2012 State Department profile
of Al Fadhli stated that,
Al-Qaida elements in Iran, led by al-Fadhli, are working to move fighters and money through Turkey to
support al-Qaida-affiliated elements in Syria. Al-Fadhli also is leveraging his extensive network of
Kuwaiti jihadist donors to send money to Syria via Turkey. Additionally, he has assisted al-Qaida in
moving multiple operatives from Pakistan via Iran and Turkey to destinations in Europe, North Africa,
and Syria... .
U.S. Threat Assessments of the Khorasan Group
In early 2014, U.S. intelligence officials tQd Congres that Syria had become a significant location for
independent or Al Qaeda-aligned groups to recruit, train, and equip a growing number of extremists,
some of whom might conduct external attacks. Director of National Intelligence James Clapper Ltated
that we're seeing now the appearance of training complexes in Syria to train people to go back to
their countries, and, of course, conduct more terrorist acts. Until recently, Administration public
statements did not mention the Khorasan Group or attribute these activities to it. However, Clapper
said in January 2014 that Jabhat al Nusra did have aspirations for attacks on the homeland.
Reports from Syria suggest that U.S. forces targeting the Khorasan Group struck and destroyed
Jabhat al Nusra-associated fadilie in Idlib Province, including buildings in the town of Kafr Dervan.
According to by, the strikes were undertaken to disrupt imminent attack plotting
against the United States and western targets. These terrorists have established a safe haven in Syria
to plan external attacks, construct and test improvised explosive devices, and recruit westerners to
conduct operations. Lt. Gen. William Mayville cited intelligence reports that the Group was in the final](ViewImageLocal?handle=hein.crs/crsmthaaaqe0001&div=1&collection=&method=preview&ext=.png&size=3)
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