Methods and sources

Method and audit trail

Coverage and selection

The archive contains 1,120,835 posts from 220 channels, dated 20 February–15 April 2026. Network searches use all 961,704 wartime posts from 216 channels, dated 28 February–8 April; the comparisons concern Iraqi Axis of Resistance accounts. All 867 wartime posts from the six claim channels were reviewed, plus 25 later Rijal al-Bas al-Shadid posts through 13 April. Publication days use Iraq local time.

Account affiliations and evidence checks

Iraq Monitor’s roster supplies outlet affiliations, supported by reviews of faction-specific content and repeated redistribution. The forwarding comparison includes 29 outlets classified as owned by or affiliated with KH, Nujaba, KSS or AAH. Militia affiliation tests exclude accounts linked only to a claim name. Removing each militia group’s busiest matching account shows whether other outlets sustain the link. Published organisational research informs the Quds Force assessment; forwarding counts do not measure those relationships.

Direct forwards and copied statements

Direct forwards count recipient posts whose Telegram records identify the original channel. Copied-statement coverage counts selected source statements reproduced by at least one outlet: 33 Saraya Awliya al-Dam, 34 Jaysh al-Ghadab, 26 Ashab al-Kahf and 31 Rijal al-Bas al-Shadid texts. These 124 readable written claims and bulletins exclude the cumulative attack-total post. Matching requires the entire text, after standardising spelling and removing links and punctuation, within 48 hours before or after publication. Repeated wording is paired with the nearest source timestamp; paraphrases are excluded.

Shared IRI statements and first amplifiers

The IRI comparison identifies 24 identical texts published by both channels. Recorded forward origins distinguish the copies; timestamps establish publication delays. First-amplifier charts identify the earliest match within 48 hours after publication, using 73 readable IRI — Military Media texts, 72 IRI — Islamic Resistance in Iraq texts, and the four other channels’ 124 texts. Simultaneous first IRI forwards are retained jointly. These charts count source posts; forwarding bars count recipient posts.

Claimed locations and target naming

The maps include 209 posts naming locations. Identical IRI copies count once; posts naming several places appear at each place. Circles count posts, not unique attacks. Facilities are placed by locality; broad areas remain broad. Target-naming charts compare 401 readable written claims and attack-media captions, including those without specific locations. Advance notices, reconnaissance and campaign graphics are excluded. Posts without readable text remain in the review record.

Footage publication

Footage delays compare publication days with attack dates explicitly stated in captions, not the first announcement. Undated captions remain in release totals but not delay calculations; date ranges are reported separately. Later footage of wartime attacks is included, including the UAE claim dated 20 March and published on 11 April.

References and evidence records

Organisational context

CTC Sentinel’s studies inform the discussion of claim names, militia relationships and Quds Force arrangements. Telegram findings and the broader organisational assessment are distinguished in the report.

Telegram source examples

These links identify individual evidence records. The chart totals come from the full ledgers, rather than these examples alone.

Retained evidence records

The research files include the source-post review, direct-forward ledger, complete-text matches, first-amplifier records, location ledger and publication-date audit. They retain both included and excluded source posts and distinguish original posts from their copies. The appendix provides the account directory used to read the charts.

Appendix Channel directory

This directory pairs the chart labels with Telegram display names and handles. Display names were checked on 30 September 2026 and may differ from wartime names; use the handle to identify the account. Sonia uses a Latin-script display name.