Iranian IRGC is sending more military and logistical reinforcements into northeastern Syria in an effort to take advantage of tensions between the Turkish Army and affiliated forces and the Kurdish-dominated Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) along the northern Syrian border. Iran is doing this with the aid of its proxies on the ground. Notably, in recent weeks SAA battalions dispatched to reinforce Hasakah Province have included Iranian proxies’ personnel.
In the countryside south of the city of Qamishli, new recruiting offices have reportedly been established by Iran. These recruiting offices are run by Hajj Mahdi, the regional leader of Lebanese Hezbollah and the Iranian IRGC representative in Hasakah. They give prospective recruits compensation of $100 per month in an effort to get them to join the group. Over 1,200 people have already been enlisted into the so-called Hezbollah Task Force as a result of these efforts. Mahdi is attempting to establish two offices along the M4 Highway: a transportation office for Task Force commanders as well as an armaments depot and training facility for fresh recruits.
Mahdi appears to have overcome any obstacles to his recruiting campaign, albeit encountering some pushback from the NDF commander in Qamishli who is affiliated with Russia. Col. Ahmad al-Hasan was recently fired from the NDF and replaced by Hassan al-Salloumi, a known IRGC ally, thanks to a quick personnel move made possible by Mahdi. Despite criticism over Iran’s position in the area, such appointments show Mahdi’s expanding power.
Private sources from inside Hasakah City have recently confirmed that Saraya al-Khorasani, a group originally affiliated with the IRGC in Iraq, has opened a new headquarters inside the city with the aid of local NDF commander Abdulkadir Hamo. Prior to the inauguration, Mahdi visited the center alongside the Iraqi commanders Ahmed al-Kinani and Abu al-Hassan to facilitate its opening and strengthen his relationship with Hamo.
Source » iranbriefing