Abdullah Azzam Brigades

Abdullah Azzam Brigades كتائب عبد الله عزام‎
Leader(s)	Majid bin Muhammad al-Majid Saleh Al-Qaraawi Surajuddin Zureiqat
Dates of operation	2009–present
Active region(s)	Middle East (primary in Lebanon)
Ideology	Sunni Islam Islamic fundamentalism Salafist jihadism
Status	Designated as a terrorist organization by the UN,NZ,UAE, Israel, UK & US.

The Abdullah Azzam Brigades, or al-Qaeda in Lebanon, (Arabic: كتائب عبد الله عزام‎‎) is a Sunni Islamist militant group, and the al-Qaeda's branch in Lebanon. The group, which began operating in 2009, was founded by Saudi Saleh Al-Qaraawi and has local networks in various countries, mainly in Egypt, Iraq, Syria, Jordan, Gaza Strip and Lebanon.

It is named after the late Sheikh Abdullah Azzam, a Palestinian from Jordan and a well known preacher and organizer who was among the first Arabs to volunteer to join the Afghan Jihad against the forces of the then Soviet Union in Afghanistan in the 1980s. Some other non-related terrorist organizations have been known to use the name Abdullah Azzam Brigades as a "name of convenience" for their operations.

After grave injuries al-Qaraawi received as a result of a drone attack in Pakistan, and his eventual capture upon his return to Saudi Arabia by the Saudi authorities, the leadership of the Brigades was assumed by Majid al-Majid, another Saudi affiliated with Fateh Al Islam and Al-Qaeda. Al-Majid was declared as leader and emir of Abdullah Azzam Brigades in June 2012, until his capture by the Lebanese authorities on 27 December 2013 and eventual death by kidney failure on 4 January 2014. Al-Majid was succeeded by Sirajuddin Zureiqat.

The Abdallah Azzam Brigades was formed by the Saudi Saleh Al-Qaraawi in 2009 as an offshoot of al-Qaeda in Iraq, and was tasked with hitting targets in the Levant and throughout the Middle East. Qaraawi is a Saudi citizen and is on the list of 85 most-wanted terrorists that was issued by the Saudi Interior Ministry in 2009.

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