While most terrorist groups are land-based insurgents, a few have developed significant naval or maritime capabilities. These aren’t “navies” in the traditional sense of fleets with warships, but some groups have maintained organized maritime forces, often called “naval guerrillas” or “maritime terrorist units.” Here are some examples:
1. Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) – Sri Lanka
- The LTTE (Tamil Tigers) had the most advanced “terrorist navy” in history, known as the Sea Tigers.
- At its peak, they operated hundreds of small boats, suicide boats, and even attempted semi-submersibles.
- They conducted naval battles against the Sri Lankan Navy, smuggled weapons across the Indian Ocean, and used suicide boats to attack warships.
- They are considered the only non-state actor to have mounted true naval warfare operations.
2. Al-Qaeda & Affiliates
- Al-Qaeda and its Yemeni branch (AQAP) used small boats in suicide attacks.
- The most famous example: the USS Cole bombing (2000), when a suicide boat packed with explosives attacked a U.S. destroyer in Aden, Yemen.
- While not a “navy,” they had organized maritime cells for sabotage and smuggling.
3. Somali Pirates (sometimes linked to terrorist groups)
- While piracy is criminal rather than ideological terrorism, some pirate groups had loose ties with al-Shabaab in Somalia.
- They used skiffs and motherships to hijack commercial vessels across the Indian Ocean.
4. Hezbollah (Lebanon)
- Hezbollah has a limited “naval unit” supported by Iran.
- They have used explosive-laden speedboats and anti-ship missiles (like the C-802, which hit an Israeli corvette in 2006).
5. ISIS
- ISIS never had a navy, but in Iraq and Syria they used small boats on rivers (Euphrates, Tigris) for transport, smuggling, and suicide attacks.
- They also threatened Mediterranean routes but lacked real sea power.
✅ Conclusion:
The LTTE’s Sea Tigers are the only terrorist group that came close to operating a true naval force capable of battles at sea. Other groups like Hezbollah and al-Qaeda used maritime tactics — mostly suicide boats and smuggling — but none developed a “navy” in the traditional sense.