New York Times: The Islamic Republic Withdraws Its Military Commanders from Syria

On Friday, December 7, the New York Times reported that the Islamic Republic, "unable to support Bashar al-Assad," has begun the process of evacuating its military commanders and forces from Syria. According to the report, senior commanders of the Quds Force, prepared forces of the IRGC, some diplomats and their families, and a number of ordinary Iranian citizens left Syria on Friday and went to Iraq and Lebanon. Informed sources stated that staff from the Islamic Republic's embassy in Damascus and forces stationed at IRGC bases in Syria also left the country on Friday morning. Some reports indicate that two senior Quds Force commanders, who were advising the Syrian army, fled to Iraq on Friday after the capture of Homs and Deir ez-Zor by rebels. Experts say the withdrawal of Iranian agents from Syria indicates a significant change in the power dynamics in Syria. Throughout the 13 years of the Syrian civil war, the Iranian government has been one of Bashar al-Assad's main supporters and used the country as a key route for supplying arms to Hezbollah in Lebanon. The coalition of opponents to Bashar al-Assad's government, led by the Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham group, has managed to capture key cities such as Aleppo, Hama, and Homs in less than ten days, taking control of vast areas of Syria from Assad's government. These groups are now advancing towards Damascus. Ahmad Nadri, a member of the Islamic Consultative Assembly, wrote on the social media platform X: "Syria is on the brink of collapse, and we are quietly watching this situation. The fall of Damascus could also eliminate Iran's influence in Iraq and Lebanon. I do not understand the reason for this inaction, but whatever it is, it is not in our favor." These developments come as Abbas Araghchi, the Iranian Foreign Minister, traveled to Damascus a few days ago to meet with Bashar al-Assad and promised full support for Assad's government. However, on Friday, in a television interview from Baghdad, he stated in a different position: "We are not prophets; whatever God's will is will happen, but resistance will do its duty."