al-Qaeda of Mesopotamia

Al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI) was a militant Sunni network that emerged in Iraq following the 2003 U.S.-led invasion. Founded by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, it allied with al-Qaeda and pledged allegiance to Osama bin Laden. AQI conducted numerous attacks, often suicide bombings, targeting security forces, government institutions, and Iraqi civilians, with a particular focus on Shi'ites to exacerbate sectarian conflict. After al-Zarqawi's death in 2006, the group rebranded as the Islamic State of Iraq (ISI) but faced significant opposition from local Sunni tribes and U.S.-led forces, greatly diminishing its power. In 2013, it resurged and declared itself the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), later breaking from the al-Qaeda franchise.12