Controversial Speech by Senior IRGC Commander: We Suffered a Hard Blow in Syria

A senior commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has acknowledged in a recently published and controversial speech that Iran has suffered a "very bad defeat" in Syria, contrary to the official stance of the Islamic Republic. Behrouz Esbati, who has been a high-ranking commander of the "Iranian advisory forces" in Syria for years and is officially the "head of the Cyber Space Headquarters of the General Staff of the Armed Forces," spoke last week at a mosque in Tehran among military personnel and supporters of the regime, responding to questions from attendees. According to reports from Iranian media, this IRGC commander stated regarding the "loss of Syria" for Iran in the "axis of resistance": "First of all, I want to say that I do not consider it an honor that we lost Syria; we lost, we were hit, and it was very hard for us." The approximately one-hour audio file of Behrouz Esbati's remarks has been circulating on Persian-language social media for several days and has also been reflected in some domestic media. According to this commander, he was a peer of Qassem Soleimani, the former commander of the Quds Force of the IRGC, who was present until the "last night" before the fall of the Assad regime in Syria. The New York Times reported that given Esbati's practical oversight of the war in Syria and his responsibility for coordinating with the Assad regime officials and Russian command in Syria, his role in commanding the network of Iranian militias and their allies in the region was more significant than that of Ismail Qaani, the commander of the Quds Force. Behrouz Esbati's statements contradict those of Ali Khamenei, as well as the President, Foreign Minister, and several other officials of the Islamic Republic, who have downplayed the loss of Syria in the "axis of resistance." On January 9, Khamenei, in his fifth speech since the fall of Bashar Assad's regime in Syria, dismissed the military blows inflicted on Iran's allied groups in the region, the deaths of political and military personnel from Hamas and Hezbollah, the destruction of a significant portion of the military capabilities of these two militia groups, and the fall of Bashar Assad's regime in Syria as unimportant. He claimed that "resistance is moving forward" and that the Islamic Republic is "approaching the peak," asserting that despite all pressures and discussions regarding defeat in the region, his government will not cease support for "resistance" against Israel anywhere, including in Gaza and the West Bank. The extremist group Hamas is considered a terrorist organization by the United States and the European Union, while Hezbollah is both a militia group and a political party that the U.S. labels as a terrorist organization, although the EU has placed its military wing on its blacklist. Esbati accused Russia of being complicit with Israel in executing plans to target senior commanders of the Islamic Republic in Syria. He stated that during Israeli operations to kill Sadegh Omidzadeh, the then-deputy of Quds Force intelligence in Syria, Reza Mousavi, the then-commander of the Quds Force in Syria, and Mohammad Reza Zahedi, who took over the Quds Force leadership in Lebanon and Syria after Mousavi's death, at every "critical moment," "the Russians would turn off their radars" so that Israel could easily target these Iranian commanders. Esbati also added that Bashar Assad, despite comprehensive military plans that Iranian forces provided him for practical participation in striking Israel, refrained from doing so and never intended to attack Israel. According to him, after October 7 (the date of the extremist Hamas attack on Israel that initiated the Gaza war), Bashar Assad repeatedly rejected Iran's requests to open a front against Israel from Syrian territory. He expressed dissatisfaction with Russia, stating that the country rejected Iran's request (in the final days of Assad's regime) for a thousand Kalashnikov rifles, which Iran deemed necessary to maintain one of the "important lines in Syria," and even did not allow the landing of an Iranian weapons-laden plane at the Hmeimim base. These remarks regarding Russia come at a time when Khamenei and his government considered Moscow a strategic partner, especially in Syria. Russia has not responded to the IRGC commander's statements. Esbati also acknowledged that the Islamic Republic of Iran does not have the actual capability to strike Israel; otherwise, it would have implemented "Operation Sadiq 3." He added: "I was not here (in Iran) and did not participate in the decision-making. Regarding why it did not happen and who decided it should not happen, we were hit (it would have been better if it had happened) and our situation in the region would have been much better. Well, now that it hasn't happened. Now the scene no longer has the capacity for the implementation of Operation Sadiq 3. One of the attendees also asked the same question: 'Why didn't you do anything when the Supreme Leader (Ali Khamenei) said years ago that if Israel makes a mistake, we will raze Tel Aviv and Haifa to the ground?' My answer is: honestly, I don't know." "Operation Sadiq 3" is a promise made by senior military commanders and officials of the Islamic Republic of Iran to retaliate against Israeli airstrikes that took place on October 27 against dozens of Iranian military targets. In response to two missile and drone attacks from Iran in late April and October of this year, Israel conducted the October 27 operation in Iran and has threatened that any subsequent attack from Iran will face a harsher response, especially since this time Iran has "lost" its air defense capability due to Israeli strikes on Iran's S-300 systems. Esbati also stated that the United States could attack Iranian positions and the Hashd al-Shaabi forces in Iraq. In remarks that have not yet been made public, he added: "Iranian missiles are not capable of penetrating American fortified sites and their concrete structures." He said: "If Iran attacks, the U.S. will respond and strike dozens of Iranian sites." He stated: "War has several characteristics. The first is that you must have logic in war. Now (let's say) we hit an American base, first of all, American bases are equipped... our conventional missiles do not have much effect on their concrete and bunkers. Well (let's say) we hit one missile, what happens next? The U.S. will hit ten of our sites, it will also attack Hashd (Hashd al-Shaabi in Iraq), and it will strike Yemen. (By hitting with this missile) where do we want to get? Attacking and hitting missiles must achieve objectives; either strategic, operational, or tactical objectives. These three... now in these conditions, dragging the region into military conflict is not in favor of resistance... now if we want to enter a new phase, the enemy will again start its operational targets... as a result, the logic of this action does not exist." This IRGC commander added that the Islamic Republic of Iran has "taken revenge" for the killing of Hassan Nasrallah, the slain Secretary-General of Hezbollah. Behrouz Esbati explained to his audience about the killing of Kiomars Pourhashimi, another senior commander of the Quds Force in Syria, who was killed on December 8, the day after the "Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham" forces began their movement in Aleppo, which contradicts the official reports of the IRGC and the Islamic Republic's institutions regarding the death of this commander. The IRGC, in its official statement regarding Pourhashimi's death, portrayed the event as a result of war and "defending the shrine" during the efforts of the "Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham" forces to dominate Aleppo province. However, Behrouz Esbati states that two Syrian military personnel who were present in the joint war room with Iranian commanders shot Pourhashimi. One of the attendees at the meeting asked him: "Is it true that a Syrian officer killed General Kiomars Pourhashimi?" Behrouz Esbati replied: "Yes. It is true. Not one officer, but two Syrian officers, who were actually part of Syrian security, entered the meeting that General Pourhashimi had convened on the morning of the enemy's movement (the movement of the 'Tahrir al-Sham' forces from Idlib), passed through the protection system, and came in. They opened the door. Three Russian officers were also present... three Syrian officers were there, and a Hezbollah kid (a senior commander of the Hezbollah group in Lebanon) was one of our friends." He added: "Our Salman was also supposed to be there, but Salman arrived late. Salman is our consul in Aleppo, who is now in Lebanon. When Salman arrived late, he told me that when he arrived, he saw that two Syrian security officers (armed attackers) were shooting the attendees. The Russians, according to military protocols for participating in meetings in war fields and in foreign countries, were wearing bulletproof vests and were not harmed, but the Hezbollah kid, who was a commander of Hezbollah and a friend of ours, was martyred, three Syrian officers were also martyred, and Hashem (Kiomars Pourhashimi) was wounded; he was taken to the hospital, and at the hospital door, he was martyred." Behrouz Esbati identified the Syrian officers who shot Kiomars Pourhashimi as those who had allied with Assad's opponents. He described the Assad regime as "a bunch of corrupt, immoral, and disconnected individuals from society" and stated that while the Syrian people had no electricity and the conditions for military personnel in heat and cold were "appalling" and they complained about the lack of electricity and heating and were sleepless and their children were getting sick, the Assad regime was unaware of the people's situation and had lost contact with society. He said that the Assad regime was also mixed with corruption and bribery at the level of its military forces and was becoming weaker day by day. He identified senior Syrian commanders, associates, and relatives of Bashar Assad, including Maher, Bashar Assad's brother and one of the senior commanders of the Syrian army, as major players in bribery. According to Esbati, in one frontline position, 360 out of 400 military personnel who were supposed to be stationed had fled by paying bribes to commanders. Behrouz Esbati stated that the collapse of the Syrian economy was also directly related to Assad's corrupt and bribery-ridden system, and the Syrian people were in distress due to harsh economic and livelihood conditions. He said: "... there was no war in Aleppo (the advance of the 'Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham' forces in capturing Aleppo was completed without a fight), the people revolted and eliminated a corrupt, immoral system. This was the reality of the scene." The Wall Street Journal reported this week that the Islamic Republic of Iran has spent tens of billions of dollars in Syria for years to ensure Assad's survival in order to create a "ring of fire" around Israel and to attack American targets from Syria as well. The Wall Street Journal's report described how Iran's massive expenditures in Syria, which particularly increased during the 13-year civil war, were squandered in 11 days of efforts by the "Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham" to reach Damascus, leading to Bashar Assad's flight. Despite the Iranian government's expenditures and the efforts of the country's leaders to portray Syria and Russia as their "strategic allies," according to Behrouz Esbati, both Russia played a role in the collapse of Assad's regime and the Assad regime itself, and even Bashar Assad's wife had no interest in Iran. He stated that the Assad regime showed interest in Arab countries like the UAE, and on the day that Ibrahim Raisi, the former President of Iran, visited Syria, the Syrian government did nothing to welcome him, while in welcoming the UAE Foreign Minister, flags of the UAE were raised along the route from Damascus airport to the presidential palace. Esbati said that Iranian forces had to struggle to welcome Raisi and had people from their supporters' families line the route. The Islamic Republic of Iran's television claimed in its coverage of Raisi's arrival in Syria that there was a "warm welcome from thousands of Syrian people" and that the reporter from state television described it as a sign of the Syrians' gratitude and appreciation for Iran. The Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic, who is also the "Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces," revealed that his government insisted on the continuation of Assad's regime until the last days. Ali Khamenei stated that more forces and equipment were prepared in Iran for dispatch to Syria (to prevent the advance of the 'Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham' forces and to ensure Assad's survival), but the U.S. and Israel had "closed both land and air routes and did not allow it." Despite repeated requests from the new rulers of Damascus for Iran to respect the sovereignty of this country and refrain from sowing the seeds of "chaos" in Syria, Behrouz Esbati, after detailing the reasons for Iran's "very bad defeat" in Syria, claimed that the Islamic Republic can still revive all the networks it had worked with in Syria for years. He added: "Iran can activate the social classes that have lived alongside us for years, work through social networks (regarding Syria), and create resistance cells (to overthrow the new government of this country)." This part of Behrouz Esbati's remarks can be seen as a response to Khamenei's repeated statements expressing confidence in the emergence of "honorable youth in Syria" to "crush those who are currently in power (the new rulers of Syria)" and can be interpreted as a kind of order from the Commander-in-Chief to his forces to attempt to strike the new Damascus government. One of the attendees asked the senior IRGC commander in Syria: "What was Bashar Assad's response to the last message from the Supreme Leader (Ali Khamenei)?" The questioner referred to a message that the Supreme Leader conveyed to Bashar Assad through Mohammad Javad Larijani in the last days of Assad's regime during his visit to Damascus.