Iranian Proxy Militia Opens New Recruitment Center in Aleppo, Syria

The head of the Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba visits areas near Aleppo in 2018 (Tasnim)
The head of the Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba visits areas near Aleppo in 2018 (Tasnim)
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Iranian Proxy Militia Opens New Recruitment Center in Aleppo, Syria

The head of the Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba visits areas near Aleppo in 2018 (Tasnim)
The head of the Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba visits areas near Aleppo in 2018 (Tasnim)

Syrian opposition media outlets are reporting that the Iranian proxy militia, Kataib al-Imam Ali, has opened a new recruitment center at the heart of the regime-run northern city of Aleppo.

Establishing the drafting center took place with consent from the Syrian regime, said local sources.

Javad al-Ghaffari, a prominent Iranian leader who is based in Aleppo, had met with officials at the Defense Ministry headquarters in Damascus to discuss and approve the operation.

All those willing to join the militia, including army defectors and dodgers of compulsory military service, will be accepted, sources predicted. Regime forces will drop their pursuit of anyone drafted into the Iranian militia, even if they are ex-soldiers wanted for decamping or citizens accused of draft evasion.

For Syrian youth living under dire security and economic circumstances, the offer is very tempting.

Syria's opposition Eye of Euphrates news network published a report revealing the details of the terms and conditions involving registration in Kataib al-Imam Ali.

According to the report, enrolled fighters will receive a monthly salary of $200 if they were married, and $150 if they were single.

They will be deployed to outposts near their home addresses and have to log in 20 days of service each month.

Iran has sought strengthening the presence of its proxies in Syria against the backdrop of a Russian orientation to downsize the role played by Iran-backed militias in war-torn country.

It is worth noting that Iran has trained about 70,000 fighters that formed 128 regiments in Syria.

Russia, after intervening in Syria in 2015, sought to weaken Iran-aligned guerrillas by reinforcing regime forces and forming army divisions for local volunteers.

Iran, however, pushed forward with its recruitment agenda in Syria, forming militias that included foreign mercenaries, members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard and fighters from the Lebanon-based Hezbollah militia.



China Accuses Australia of 'Hyping' Chinese Naval Drills

FILE PHOTO: Chinese Defence Ministry spokesperson Wu Qian attends a press briefing in Beijing, China August 31, 2023. REUTERS/Yew Lun Tian/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Chinese Defence Ministry spokesperson Wu Qian attends a press briefing in Beijing, China August 31, 2023. REUTERS/Yew Lun Tian/File Photo
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China Accuses Australia of 'Hyping' Chinese Naval Drills

FILE PHOTO: Chinese Defence Ministry spokesperson Wu Qian attends a press briefing in Beijing, China August 31, 2023. REUTERS/Yew Lun Tian/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Chinese Defence Ministry spokesperson Wu Qian attends a press briefing in Beijing, China August 31, 2023. REUTERS/Yew Lun Tian/File Photo

China’s defense ministry spokesperson Wu Qian said on Sunday that Australian complaints over recent Chinese live-fire naval drills in international waters between Australia and New Zealand were "hyped up" and "inconsistent with the facts”
Australia Defense Minister Richard Marles said on Saturday that Beijing had failed to give satisfactory reasons for what he called inadequate notice for live-fire drills a day earlier, which he said had forced airlines to divert flights.
Qian said in a post from the Chinese defense ministry that China had issued repeated safety notices in advance, and that its actions complied with international law and did not affect aviation flight safety.
"Australia, fully knowing this, made unreasonable accusations against China and deliberately hyped it up," Qian's post said, according to Reuters. "We are deeply surprised and strongly dissatisfied."
New Zealand said on Saturday it had also observed the Chinese navy conducting a second day of live-fire exercises and that it was monitoring a fleet of Chinese vessels.