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On November 26, 2023, the Syrian pro-opposition website Euphrates Eye published a report that on the previous day, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) transferred around 150 Afghan and Iraqi operatives belonging to the Iran-backed militias to the southern Syrian border, adding that the operatives entered Syria from Iraq through the Al-Bukamal border crossing via buses belonging to the Syrian regime.[1]
According to the website, the operatives were transported in two different waves, under the direct protection of the Iranian "security office," claiming that the operatives were driven towards Damascus, from where they were to be transported to the Daraa and Quneitra governorates to be deployed in Syrian military positions in those areas.
The report claimed that a few days ago, military reinforcements of the Iraqi Al-Nujaba Movement militia arrived from Iraq to the area surrounding Al-Bukamal, east of Deir Al-Zour, adding that after entering Syria, the reinforcements were stationed in military positions that were dedicated for them; later, they were distributed on the outskirts of Al-Bukamal and in the Al-Salehiyah desert, east of Deir Al-Zour.
The website shared a photo and a video showing the IRGC buses carrying the militia operatives who had arrived from Iraq.
Since the beginning of the ongoing Israel-Hamas war, there have been multiple reports that Iran-backed militias have sent hundreds of operatives to southern Syrian and taken control of the area along the Israeli border.[2]
[1] November 26, 2023.
[2] See MEMRI JTTM Reports: Syrian Opposition Website: More Than 700 Elite Forces Trained By Hizbullah And Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Now Control Syrian Border With Israel, November 13, 2023; Jihadis From Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Syria, And Yemen Amass In Multifront Threat To Israel, November 21, 2023;
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