Reports of Iranian Forces Killed in Missile Attack in Syria

While reports from Syria indicate that several Iranian forces were killed in a missile attack on a Syrian military base on Sunday night, Iranian media denied on Monday the deaths of Iranian and Afghan forces dispatched to Syria in these attacks. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported hours after the missile attack that most of the 26 fatalities in the missile strikes on Sunday night were Iranian forces. The Observatory, which monitors the seven-year civil war in Syria from London, explained that these casualties resulted from a missile hitting a ground-to-ground missile depot at a base in the outskirts of Hama city. The base of the 47th Brigade of the Syrian Army in the outskirts of Hama has previously been recognized as one of the centers where Iranian dispatched forces are recruited. Some missiles in the Sunday night attacks hit near the Nairab military airport in Aleppo. The Al-Mayadeen network and other media aligned with the Syrian government in Lebanon initially reported on Sunday night the occurrence of missile attacks on Syrian Army bases in the outskirts of Hama and Homs but did not mention potential casualties or damage. The Syrian Army shortly confirmed the occurrence of attacks on the bases early Monday morning and identified the source of the missile fire as "American and British bases" located in northern Jordan. According to Reuters, due to the intensity of the attacks and explosions, a 2.6 magnitude earthquake was recorded in Syria. The ISNA news agency in Tehran initially reported on Monday, citing what they called "local sources and activists" [in Syria], the death of 18 Iranians among the dispatched forces to Syria, adding that one of them was a commander. However, shortly after, ISNA and other Iranian news agencies, citing "informed sources in the armed forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran," denied the deaths of Iranians in the Hama region attacks. ISNA also removed the initial report from its output. Tasnim, a news agency close to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, while "denying the martyrdom of Iranian advisors," also quoted the "commander of Fatemiyoun" denying the deaths of forces from this brigade in Syria. Tasnim, which did not mention the name of the commander of the Afghan forces dispatched to Syria, quoted him as saying that "the base of this brigade near Aleppo is intact." From the series of reports published in Arab media, it seems that the base of the Fatemiyoun forces is located in Nahr al-Bared in the outskirts of al-Ghab. Iran has claimed a "consultative" presence in Syria over the seven years of the Syrian civil war based on bilateral agreements, but in addition to sending its own forces, it has also organized the Fatemiyoun Brigade and Zainabiyoun Brigade, consisting of Shiites from Afghanistan and Pakistan, to support the regime of Bashar al-Assad in Syria. According to the commander of the Fatemiyoun Brigade, more than two thousand of the Afghan Shiite forces dispatched from Iran to Syria have been killed in recent years. However, while the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights has mentioned the possibility of attributing the Sunday night attack to Israel, Israeli officials have remained silent on the matter, and Israeli media have only reflected these attacks based on Arab and Syrian media reports. In the attack on the 20th of Farvardin against the Syrian Army airbase in Homs province, which Russia attributed to Israel, but Israel remained silent regarding its potential responsibility, at least seven Iranian military personnel dispatched to Syria were killed, and their bodies were transferred to Iran for burial. The Associated Press has noted that the tone of Israeli and Iranian leaders regarding Iran's military presence in Syria has worsened in recent days, and Avigdor Lieberman, the Israeli defense minister, warned that if Iran targets Tel Aviv, Israel will also strike Tehran. Mr. Lieberman also emphasized that Israel's hand should be free to act against the threat posed by Iran in Syria. The new attacks on Syrian bases have occurred while Mike Pompeo, the new U.S. Secretary of State, continued his regional tour and met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Tel Aviv on Sunday night, focusing on "Iran's threats in the region" and the Iran nuclear agreement. Shortly after, the White House announced that Donald Trump, the U.S. President, had a phone conversation with Mr. Netanyahu. In the latest development regarding events related to Syria, Israeli media reported on Monday afternoon that ministers in the Israeli security cabinet had been called to an urgent and immediate meeting. The Ministry of Defense in Tel Aviv has been mentioned as the location for this meeting. Only ministers with security and sensitive positions are members of the Israeli security cabinet, and this limited cabinet is chaired by Benjamin Netanyahu, the Prime Minister. The "extraordinary" meeting of the Israeli cabinet is taking place while Avigdor Lieberman has returned to Israel from a trip to the U.S. and meetings with senior American officials. General James Mattis, the U.S. Secretary of Defense, indicated in Congress and immediately in a meeting with Mr. Lieberman at the Pentagon that a conflict between Israel and Iran over Iran's military presence in Syria is not unlikely. General Mattis added that "he can imagine how this conflict might start, but he cannot guess how far and where it will escalate." Meanwhile, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the leader and commander-in-chief of the Islamic Republic of Iran, in a meeting with thousands of workers ahead of Labor Day on Monday morning, without directly referring to regional events, said, "I said a few years ago, during the presidency of another American president, who was as rude and ridiculous as the current president, that the era of 'hit and run' is over." Ayatollah Khamenei's reference seems to be to George W. Bush. The leader of the Islamic Republic also added, "They know that if they enter into military conflict with Iran, they will suffer multiple blows." Bashar al-Assad, the President of Syria, also in remarks in Damascus on Monday morning, which was his first indirect reaction to the events of the previous hours in his country, said, "The increase in aggression against Syria and the transfer of aggressor countries to the stage of direct aggression, after the disgraceful defeat of their mercenaries and agents, strengthens the determination of the Syrian people to destroy all forms of terrorism and adhere to their right to shape the future of their country." According to SANA, the official Syrian news agency, Mr. Assad made these remarks during a meeting with Alaeddin Boroujerdi, the head of the National Security and Foreign Policy Commission of the Islamic Republic of Iran, who had traveled to Damascus. Mr. Boroujerdi arrived in Damascus just hours after the heavy missile attacks on Syria, and only a day after the attack attributed to Israel on the 20th of Farvardin, Ali Akbar Velayati, an advisor to Ayatollah Khamenei on international affairs, also met with Bashar al-Assad under the pretext of attending an Islamic conference in Damascus. At that time, Mr. Velayati stated that Israel's action "cannot go unanswered."