IRGC Drones Attack ISIS Convoy

Iran's state television reported on Friday that drones belonging to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the 'Fatemiyoun Brigade' attacked a convoy of Islamic State (ISIS) forces in the Deir ez-Zor region near the Iraq-Syria border on Thursday. The news network claimed that the convoy was planning to attack an area controlled by forces loyal to Bashar al-Assad. According to the report, IRGC drones identified the convoy and targeted it with missiles. Following the attack, forces affiliated with the Islamic Republic, known as the 'Resistance Axis,' including the Fatemiyoun Brigade, engaged with the convoy, killing many of its members. Iranian officials and state media refer to groups like Hezbollah and forces supporting Assad as the 'Resistance Axis.' The Fatemiyoun Brigade consists of Afghan forces residing in Iran, while the Zainabiyoun Brigade is made up of Pakistani Shiites, both fighting under the IRGC to defend Assad's regime in Syria. The state television also released videos allegedly obtained from ISIS members' cameras documenting their operations. No other sources, including the IRGC or ISIS, have responded to this 'drone attack.' Furthermore, there is no independent report confirming that the forces mentioned by Iranian television were affiliated with ISIS; Iranian state media have previously linked some armed groups opposing Assad to ISIS. The report comes despite previous statements from Iranian officials asserting that Iranian military forces are only present in Syria to provide 'advisory services.' However, the Lebanese network Al-Mayadeen reported on August 16 that IRGC forces had begun operations against ISIS in Syria 'to avenge the blood' of Mohsen Hojaji. In a video released by Al-Mayadeen, IRGC forces were seen in uniform conducting military operations against ISIS in the 'Hmeimeh' area of Syria. Hours after this report, an IRGC spokesperson stated that the organization had not conducted 'independent ground operations in Syria.' Nonetheless, Ramadan Sharif, the spokesperson, emphasized that 'severe revenge' against ISIS is 'on the agenda of the IRGC and will be executed at the appropriate time.' Following these reports, several Iranian officials, including Qassem Soleimani, commander of the Quds Force, stated that they would take 'revenge' for the killing of Mohsen Hojaji. Hojaji was a member of the '8th Najaf Ashraf Brigade' of the IRGC and was captured on August 7 during a confrontation in the border area of Syria, Iraq, and Jordan, with images of his execution by ISIS circulating widely in Iranian media and social networks. A significant number of Iranian forces have been killed in Syria and Iraq, with Mohammad Ali Shahidi, head of the Martyrs Foundation, reporting 2,100 deaths by March 2017. In a recent video, ISIS threatened to carry out new attacks in Iran. Following ISIS's attack on the Iranian parliament and the tomb of Ayatollah Khomeini in Tehran, which resulted in 17 deaths and over 50 injuries, the IRGC announced on June 18 that it had targeted one of ISIS's centers in Deir ez-Zor in retaliation for the attacks in Tehran.