Database: Identifiers of Designated Islamic Terrorist Organizations

Hizb-ut-Tahrir

Not yet designated as terrorist by a Western country

Base of operations: Syria, Western Europe, United States

Background: Investigative Project on Terrorism

Translating to "the Party of Liberation," Hizb-ut-Tahrir was founded in 1953 in Jerusalem with the aim of establishing a caliphate under Islamic law. Officially espousing a non-violent approach, Hizb-ut-Tahrir has branches in multiple countries including Western Europe (e.g., the United Kingdom) and the United States. In Syria, Hizb-ut-Tahrir is believed to be linked to a group of battalions, primarily concentrated in Aleppo and Idlib, called Ansar al-Khilafa ("Supporters of the Caliphate"), which work with a variety of other rebels against the Assad regime. Some of these Ansar al-Khilafa fighters ended up in Hasakah province fighting against the Kurdish YPG militias, eventually being subsumed under the Islamic State. However, Hizb-ut-Tahrir recently came out against the Islamic State's caliphate declaration.

Hizb-ut-Tahrir Emblem	Hizb-ut-Tahrir Emblem	Hizb-ut-Tahrir Placard in Chicago	Hizb-ut-Tahrir Poster
Hizb-ut-Tahrir: Ansar al-Khilafa Brigade West Aleppo	Hizb-ut-Tahrir: Ansar al-Khilafa Emblem