Iran scales back military from Syria after Israel tensions

Iran has scaled back its military presence in Syria following a series of missile attacks attributed to Israel, according to Asharq Al-Awsat and agencies on April 24.

While Iran has provided military backing to Syrian government forces since the onset of the Syrian Civil War in 2011, the recent escalation between Israel and Iran has seen a partial withdrawal, according to a war monitor.

A source close to Iran-backed Hezbollah said, “Iran withdrew its forces from southern Syria,” including two provinces, Quneitra and Daraa which border to the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights.

However, the source added that Iran continues to have a military presence in other parts of Syria.

The region has been plunged into great uncertainty in the past few months following numerous attacks against Iranian forces and its ally Hezbollah in Syria, widely attributed to Israel.

The US has also conducted attacks against Iranian positions, following a January 28 attack allegedly carried out by Iranian forces, on a US base in Jordan which killed three US soldiers.

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Israel’s reported strike of what Iran says was its Iranian consulate in Damascus on April 1 destroyed the building and eliminated seven members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, including two generals.

Iran’s retaliation saw over 300 missiles and drones attack Israel between April 13-14.

However, Iran had reportedly started to reduce its forces before the April strike, following a January 20 attack that killed five Revolutionary Guards in Damascus, including a Syrian intelligence chief and his deputy, as disclosed by the Hezbollah-connected source.

Military personnel had also been withdrawn from Damascus and southern Syria according to the war monitor, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

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In Damascus, Syria, Iran’s influence appears to have reduced – at least at the surface level – with several of its military offices closed, as observed by recent visitors.

They added that Iranian flags and portraits of Iran’s leaders, previously displayed in the streets of Damascus, have mostly been removed.

But the absence of Iranian military personnel has been replaced with Iranian-backed Lebanese and Iraqi fighters, according to the London-based monitor’s chief Rami Abdel Rahman.

While Iran maintains it has no combat troops in Syria but only officers who provide military advising and training, the Observatory reports up to 3,000 Iranian personnel in Syria.

Iranian military forces are also bolstered by the tens of thousands of fighters from Lebanon, Iraq and Afghanistan who have received their training.

According to Abdel Rahman, the recent strikes have prompted a departure of some Iranian advisors, although some have stayed in the northern and eastern provinces.

While Iranian forces might be scaling back their direct personnel, the continued presence of Iranian-trained and supported fighters suggests a strategic repositioning rather than a complete disengagement.

Asharq Al-Awsat / Agencies