Iran, which is an ally of regime in Syria has significantly reduced its military presence in the country, which has been subjected to intense strikes attributed to Israel, a source close to the Hezbollah group told Agence France-Presse. and to a non-governmental organization, writes BTA.
According to the source close to the pro-Iranian Lebanese group “Hezbollah”, which has a strong presence in Syria, where it supports President Bashar al-Assad, this happened in the last few weeks.
“The Iranian military has withdrawn from all of southern Syria, from the area around Damascus through Sweida and Deraa to the south, including from the areas bordering Israel”, the source specified.
They continued to gather at the Iranian consulate in Damascus, where they “believed they were safe from Israeli strikes,” the source added.
On April 1, a strike attributed to Israel targeting the consulate killed seven members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the Iranian regime's military group, including two senior generals.
On April 13, Iran launched an unprecedented attack on Israel. A week later, an attack attributed to Tel Aviv targeted central Iran, but Tehran downplayed it.
The non-governmental organization Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHRC) confirmed the “pre-deployment of the Iranian parts of Damascus and southern Syria(…) all the way to the border with the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights”.
This UK-based NGO has a wide network of sources in Syria and has specified that pro-Iranian Lebanese and Iraqi fighters have replaced Iranians in these areas.
People who have traveled to Syria told AFP that the Iranian presence has become less visible in Damascus, especially in the old quarters of the city, where several offices belonging to the Iranian military have been closed.
Flags, banners and portraits of Iranian leaders have been removed from many neighborhoods, witnesses added.
Israel, which rarely confirms its operations in Syria, has stepped up its strikes against Iranian militants and groups affiliated with them in the country since the start of the war in the Gaza Strip against the Palestinian group “Hamas”.
Tehran says its presence in Syria is limited to military advisers sent at the start of the civil war in 2011 to help the Syrian army.
But according to the National Security Council, about 3,000 Iranian soldiers are stationed in the country. They control tens of thousands of fighters of “Hezbollah” and pro-Iranian Iraqi, Pakistani and Afghan groups.