عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
Arab World

Iranian Militias Arrest 11 Syrian Loyalists

A Syrian army soldier stands on a damaged building in Deraa al Balaad, Syria, September 9, 2021. REUTERS/Yamam al Shaar
A Syrian army soldier stands on a damaged building in Deraa al Balaad, Syria, September 9, 2021. REUTERS/Yamam al Shaar
TT
TT

Iranian Militias Arrest 11 Syrian Loyalists

A Syrian army soldier stands on a damaged building in Deraa al Balaad, Syria, September 9, 2021. REUTERS/Yamam al Shaar
A Syrian army soldier stands on a damaged building in Deraa al Balaad, Syria, September 9, 2021. REUTERS/Yamam al Shaar

The Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the Lebanese Hezbollah arrested 11 Iran-backed Syrian fighters in al-Bokamal and al-Mayadin, under the control of the regime forces and Iranian militias.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) quoted sources as saying that the arrests were due to their interrogation following charges of communicating with the international coalition and Israel.

The Observatory claimed that Iranian militias and Hezbollah lost confidence in their Syrian loyalists and suspected they provided the coalition with information about movements and locations.

It indicated that a delegation of top commanders and investigation units, headed by the security officer of the Iranian militias in Syria, went to Deir Ezzor.

Reports indicated that Iranian leaders intend to change commanders in charge of the crossing, fearing Israeli or international coalition agents could be among them.

The IRGC militias began evacuating many of their military headquarters in al-Bokamal, amid a state of alert among militia members and their deployment in the streets.

The areas under the control of the Iranian militias on the Syrian-Lebanese border and the vicinity of Damascus are on security alert, and the militias banned anyone from approaching the main military headquarters.

They evacuated many residential buildings inhabited by militia members and leaders.

The SOHR sources indicated that security reinforcements were sent to the headquarters of the Iranian militias and Hezbollah.

Iranian militias fear security breaches that may affect the region's military sites, headquarters, and weapons depots.

Meanwhile, 11 pro-Iranian fighters were killed in three separate airstrikes that targeted, in less than 24 hours, trucks in eastern Syria after they had successively crossed from the Iraqi side.

The border region between eastern Syria and Iraq is one of the most prominent areas of influence of Iran and its loyal groups in Syria, including Iraqi factions.

Over the years, trucks carrying weapons, ammunition, warehouses, and military sites have been subjected to airstrikes, some of which the US claimed responsibility for, while others were attributed to Israel.

Most Viewed

 
 
Arab World

Lebanon Security Source Says Hezbollah Official Targeted in Beirut Strike

Civil defense members work as Lebanese army soldiers stand guard at the site of an Israeli strike in Beirut's Basta neighbourhood, amid the ongoing hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, Lebanon November 23, 2024. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi
Civil defense members work as Lebanese army soldiers stand guard at the site of an Israeli strike in Beirut's Basta neighbourhood, amid the ongoing hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, Lebanon November 23, 2024. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi
TT
TT

Lebanon Security Source Says Hezbollah Official Targeted in Beirut Strike

Civil defense members work as Lebanese army soldiers stand guard at the site of an Israeli strike in Beirut's Basta neighbourhood, amid the ongoing hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, Lebanon November 23, 2024. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi
Civil defense members work as Lebanese army soldiers stand guard at the site of an Israeli strike in Beirut's Basta neighbourhood, amid the ongoing hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, Lebanon November 23, 2024. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi

A Lebanese security source said the target of a deadly Israeli airstrike on central Beirut early Saturday was a senior Hezbollah official, adding it was unclear whether he was killed.

"The Israeli strike on Basta targeted a leading Hezbollah figure," the security official told AFP without naming the figure, requesting anonymity to discuss sensitive matters.

The early morning airstrike has killed at least 15 people and injured 63, according to authorities, and had brought down an eight-storey building nearby, in the second such attack on the working-class neighbourhood of Basta in as many months.

"The strike was so strong it felt like the building was about to fall on our heads," said Samir, 60, who lives with his family in a building facing the one that was hit.

"It felt like they had targeted my house," he said, asking to be identified by only his first name because of security concerns.

There had been no evacuation warning issued by the Israeli military for the Basta area.

After the strike, Samir fled his home in the middle of the night with his wife and two children, aged 14 and just three.

On Saturday morning, dumbstruck residents watched as an excavator cleared the wreckage of the razed building and rescue efforts continued, with nearby buildings also damaged in the attack, AFP journalists reported.

The densely packed district has welcomed people displaced from traditional Hezbollah bastions in Lebanon's east, south and southern Beirut, after Israel intensified its air campaign on September 23, later sending in ground troops.

"We saw two dead people on the ground... The children started crying and their mother cried even more," Samir told AFP, reporting minor damage to his home.

Since last Sunday, four deadly Israeli strikes have hit central Beirut, including one that killed Hezbollah spokesman Mohammed Afif.

Residents across the city and its outskirts awoke at 0400 (0200 GMT) on Saturday to loud explosions and the smell of gunpowder in the air.

"It was the first time I've woken up screaming in terror," said Salah, a 35-year-old father of two who lives in the same street as the building that was targeted.

"Words can't express the fear that gripped me," he said.

Saturday's strikes were the second time the Basta district had been targeted since war broke out, after deadly twin strikes early in October hit the area and the Nweiri neighbourhood.

Last month's attacks killed 22 people and had targeted Hezbollah security chief Wafiq Safa, who made it out alive, a source close to the group told AFP.

Salah said his wife and children had been in the northern city of Tripoli, about 70 kilometres away (45 miles), but that he had to stay in the capital because of work.

His family had been due to return this weekend because their school reopens on Monday, but now he has decided against it following the attack.

"I miss them. Every day they ask me: 'Dad, when are we coming home?'" he said.

Lebanon's health ministry says that more than 3,650 people have been killed since October 2023, after Hezbollah initiated exchanges of fire with Israel in solidarity with its Iran-backed ally Hamas over the Gaza war.

However, most of the deaths in Lebanon have been since September this year.

Despite the trauma caused by Saturday's strike, Samir said he and his family had no choice but to return home.

"Where else would I go?" he asked.

"All my relatives and siblings have been displaced from Beirut's southern suburbs and from the south."