International Liberation Brigades

  

International Liberation Brigades
Active	September 1, 1980 – present
Ideology	Revolutionary socialism Third world socialism Proletarian internationalism Anti-imperialism Anti-derzhavism Anti-capitalism
Area of operations	Global; Middle East, Africa, South Asia, German New Guinea
Strength	TBD in total (1,000 actively deployed personnel)
Part of	International Conference of Marxist and Maoist Organizations
Allies	United People's Committees Indonesia North Vietnam
Opponents	European Community Conference of American States African Union
Battles and wars	Congo War Internal conflict in Thailand Syrian Civil War Papua conflict Internal conflict in Ethiopia

The International Liberation Brigades (ILB), commonly refered to as the Liberation Brigades or simply the Brigades, is an international revolutionary socialist armed group and militant movemenet composed of leftist foreign fighters and volunteers fighting for world communism and world revolution. Founded in 1980, it was created by Fidel Castro, leader of the Cuban Revolutionary Army and one of the veteran commanders of the Cuban insurgency against the Antilles during the 1960s, and was initially created as a foreign legion to seek for the eventual liberation of Cuba and was thus initially composed of leftwing Cuban exiles, however the overall goals of the group shifted and would soon be reorganized into an international socialist paramilitary force seeking to dismantle global capitalism and imperialism. It is the de facto armed wing and paramilitary arm of the International Conference of Marxist and Maoist Organizations and has been involved in numerous conflicts all over the world since the 1990s.

The ILB were first deployed during the Congo War in support of the People's Republic of the Congo and the internal conflict against the government of Thailand around the same time. The ILB is presently active in the Syrian Civil War fighting on behalf of the Revolutionary Council and supporting the Papua Liberation Army against Germany in German New Guinea since 2006. The ILB mainly recruits in member states of the Marxist–Maoist Conference where the member parties are in charge and in active combat zones under ILB-held or pro-ILB control. At least 1,000 members have been deployed as of 2019, however the total size of the organization remains unknown. The ILB has also been active in supporting the Somali Liberation Front in the regional war in Ethiopia since 2007.

The ILB has been designated as a terrorist organization by the Conference of American States and European Community with all member states also designating the ILB as a terrorist group and banning their citizens from joining the organization. The group is also designated terrorist by the African Union and most of its member states as well as the Arab League.

History

Formation

The International Liberation Brigades were formally established on September 1, 1980, by Fidel Castro, a Cuban-born revolutionary and guerilla warfare expert, in the United People's Committees. The ILB was the result of efforts by Castro to form a foreign legion of left-wing fighters with the intent on liberating Cuba and establishing an independent Cuban republic under a socialist government from the Antilles, a state that he was opposed to and sought its dismanteling. Castro was the founder and commander of the Cuab Revolutionary Army along with his brother Raul Castro and Che Guevara. Castro fought in the Cuban insurgency and sought Cuban independence, but fled in 1968 at the end of the conflict and fled to the Brazorian Confederation via Operation Salvador. He would remain heavily active in Latin America, supporting numerous communist militant groups, governments, and revolutions and participated in the Colombia War in support of the Communist Party of the Andes. Castro would support the United People's Committees upon its creation as its government supported dismanteling the Antilles and backed Cuban independence whereas the United Commonwealth sought the Antilles' annexation into the country as a continental republic, including Cuba.

Throughout the 1970s, Castro served as a military advisor for the Andean military and supported other communist guerilla groups across the world as well with the backing of the Andes. He would lobby the Andean government to aid with forming a leftist foreign legion to retake Cuba in a revolutionary war of independence and in particular sought to convince many Cubanos to come to the Andes and recruit them into the hypothetical unit.

Organization

Leadership

The leadership of the International Liberation Brigades is headquartered in Bogotá, the capital city of the Andes at the Plaza de los Héroes Cubanos. It is lead by two leading bodies: the Council of Officers which is administered by the Andean Ministry for National Defense as well as delegates from the North Vietnamese, Laotian and Indonesian armies and the Council of Revolutionaries, which consists of delegates from the various organizations that receive support from the ILB. These councils are in constant correspondence with the forces on the ground. The highest position within the Brigades is that of General-Commissar, however the position is largely symbolic and the power is held by the two councils. Due to this the position of General-Commissar as well as the positions within the Council of Revolutionaries are usually awarded to seasoned ILB-affiliated veterans who have left the armed struggle of their militias and were granted Andean citizenship to avoid prosecution by the government of their home countries.

Headquarter of the International Liberation Brigades. The Cuban flag is flown on the building in commemoration of ILB founder and Cuban rebel leader Fidel Castro, the face shown is that of the Argentinian-Cuban communist martyr Che Guevara.

Both councils give directions both militarily and politically, though they tend to be more reserved on the former to not interfere in currently ongoing operations. Military advisors sent by countries ruled by parties that are part of the International Conference of Marxist and Maoist Organizations, such as those in the Syrian Civil War or the Internal conflict in Ethiopia are sent there through the ILB with the approval of both councils. The same is applied to the volunteers themselves, who are trained and sent to the conflicts with ILB aid.

Recruitment

Brigade volunteers can join through a multitude of ways, but usually the application happens in secret, as the ILB are considered a terrorist organization in several countries. Long time members of ICMMO member organizations may apply through said body or their respective party and are sent to recruitment centers in the Andes, Angola or Indonesia. where they undergo psychological and physical tests to determined if they are fit for service. Further, recruits are often contacted on forums on the dark web as well. In countries that are under ICMMO affiliated leadership the recruitment functions largely through the armed forces of those states. For example, in the United People's Committees any able bodied person with at least two years of military service may apply to join the foreign legion. RIA reports have also uncovered that Andean and Indonesian agents foster relations with militant groups within the CAS and connect prospects with contacts in domestic and foreign organizations that receive aid from the ICMMO and the ILB. In countries with ongoing insurgencies, the above mentioned methods for recruitment generally don't apply as the recruits of support-receiving armies are not considered part of the foreign legion.

Main groups

Country active	Name	Abbr	Estimated strength	Note
Ethiopia	Somali Liberation Front	SLF	10,000	Armed wing of the Somali Revolutionary Socialist Party.
	Marcus Garvey Battalion	MGB	ca. 200	Mostly compromised of Okaloosan , Angolan and Libyan volunteers. Under command of the Somali Liberation Front.
Germany	Papua Liberation Army	PLA	3,000-5,000	Coalition of various militant anti-colonial groups in German New Guinea.
	Internationales Bataillon Spartakus	IBS	at least 400	Foreign volunteer detachment of the Papua Liberation Army, most recruits are from former German colonies or Germany itself.
Syria	People's Militias (commonly known as Lijanis, from their arabic name 'al-Lijan al-Sha'biyah)	LS	ca. 5,500	Armed wing of the United Syrian Communist Party.
	Red Eagles (commonly referred to by their Arabic name an-Nasr al-Ahmar)	AN	estimated between 200 and 250	Under the command of the United Syrian Communist Party. Largely made up of North African, Kurdish and Palestinian volunteers.
Thailand	Thai Popular Front-Militarized Communist Party of Siam	TPF-MCPS	More than 300,000	Largest ongoing insurgency with ICMMO support.
	Isan Revolutionary Expedition Force	IREF	estimated 400-550	Joint military expedition of Laos and Indonesia in the Isan region of Thailand.
United People's Committees	People's Medicinal Volunteer Corps "Che Guevara"	PMVC-Guevara	290	Volunteers of the medicinal corps of the Bolivarian People's Liberation Army. Not engaged in active armed struggle but as support for fighting ILB groups.
United People's Committees (de facto)	Cuban Liberation Brigade - José Martí	CLB-Martí	400	The CLB was the first of the ILB founded by Fidel Castro in 1980. The force was (and still is) made up of Cuban nationalists who opposed Anglo-Antillean rule over Cuba and leftist (mainly hispanic) defectors from the Antilles. The Cuban Brigade, or simply "Cubanos" serve as the official armed wing of the Cuban government in exile and are the foreign legion of the Andean People's Army. To this day the Cuban Brigade has the official goal of retaking Cuba and declaring an independent state on the island.

Disbanded groups

Country active	Name	Abbr	Estimated strength	Active
Guyana	Rupununi Liberation Front Volunteers	RLF Volunteers	3,200	Active from 1987 until the end of the Essequibo War in 1992.
Tajikistan	International Volunteer Corps in Tajikistan	IVCT	9,900	Active during the Sino-Tajik War from 1983 to 1994.

Terrorist designation

The International Liberation Brigades are considered a terrorist organization by the Conference of American States, the European Community and several member states of the Arab League and the African Union. Citizens of these nations are banned from joining any of the ILB-affiliated militant groups. Apart from these international organizations, several other countries have declared the ILB to be a terrorist or criminal organization. The first to do so were the Antilles who consider the Brigades as the direct successor to the Cuban Liberation Army and a subversive group sponsored by a rogue regime. Other countries have banned the ILB and their allied insurgent groups as well, such as Thailand, Burma, India and Syria (until 2022).

The ban of the ILB usually includes the aforementioned ban on joining the organization, the display of its symbols and in some cases the distribution of its publications. Many states which have active ICMMO sections heavily monitor those to prevent the recruitment of Brigadiers.

Due to the Andes sponsoring the ILB and officially hosting their headquarters, ILB fighters who have been denaturalized by their home countries for their membership in the organization may receive the Andean citizenship, which among other reasons has caused the Andes to be considered a rogue state by Sierra, Brazil and Thailand.

See also

• International Brigades
• List of insurgent groups in Ethiopia