Three More Members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Killed in Syria

Iranian media reported on Monday, November 9, the deaths of three more Iranian military personnel referred to as 'advisors' in recent clashes in Syria. According to Tasnim News Agency, these individuals are 'Hojjatoleslam Ali Tamamzadeh' known by his jihadist name 'Sheikh Abu Hadi', 'Seyyed Ismail Siratnia', and 'Seyyed Milad Mostafavi', who were present in Syria 'for advisory missions' and were killed 'while engaged in the conflict involving Syrian forces' against Bashar al-Assad's opponents. The Mashregh News website also reported the deaths of three members of the IRGC's Basij, naming them as 'Hojjatoleslam Ali Tamamzadeh', 'Seyyed Ismail Siratnia', and 'Meisam Madovari'. The report states that they were part of units known as 'Defenders of the Shrine' who were killed during the 'Ashura Operation'. Mashregh News writes that with the deaths of these three, the number of Iranian casualties in this operation has exceeded 45. Reports indicate that 'Ali Tamamzadeh', from Karaj, was killed on Friday, November 6, during the Ashura Operation by forces of the 'Islamic State' (ISIS). 'Seyyed Ismail Siratnia', from Gilan and a member of the IRGC's Mohammad Rasulullah forces in Greater Tehran, was killed during an operation in Syria by shrapnel from a mortar shell hitting his side and back. 'Seyyed Milad Mostafavi', a Basij member of the 165th Imam Hussein Brigade and from Bahar County in Hamadan Province, died during the Ashura Operation in the Aleppo axis. The Islamic Republic of Iran claims it has not sent military forces to participate in the war in Syria, asserting that IRGC or Basij members present in the country only serve a military advisory role. On Sunday, it was also reported that with the death of an IRGC captain and a Basij commander, the number of Iranian forces killed in Syria during the new operation against Bashar al-Assad's opponents, named 'Ashura Operation', had reached at least 42. Fars News Agency reported on November 6 that Captain Moussa Jamshidian, from the 8th Najaf Ashraf Division of the IRGC, was killed in the clashes in Syria. The report also stated that Mohammad Hossein Mohammadi was killed in Syria on Saturday; news websites identified him as a former head of the student Basij at Yazd Azad University. The 'Ashura Operation' began at the start of the month of Muharram, supported by Russian air forces, by the Syrian army and units of the IRGC and Hezbollah to reclaim the city of Aleppo in Syria. According to reports, among those who have died during this operation are Mohammad Hossein Azizabadi, Amir Hossein Heyoudi, Hossein Jamali, Ezzatollah Soleimani, Ismail Zahedpour, Mohsen Fanousi, Qadir Sarlak, Rouhollah Ghorbani, Moslem Nasr, Khanali Youssefi, Moslem Khizab, Mehdi Alidoost, Abdollah Bagheri, Milad Mostafavi, Sajjad Tahernia, Rouhollah Emadi, Amin Karimi, Mohammad Ali Hosseini, Ahmad Estahkami, Nader Hamid Deilami, Majid Sanaei Moghaddam, Mojtaba Karami, and Reza Damroud. Hossein Salami, the deputy commander of the IRGC, attributed the increase in Iranian casualties in Syria to the increase in both 'quantity and quality' of Iranian military personnel in the country. Ali Shamkhani, the secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, stated on Saturday that the presence of the Islamic Republic's military forces in Syria 'is not aimed at participating in the war'. He added, 'If Iraq, Yemen, and other neighboring countries collapse, what will happen at Iran's borders? This is where Iran's presence for advisory purposes in countries like Syria and Iraq becomes necessary and essential.' Previously, the chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff reported the presence of about two thousand Iranian forces alongside the Syrian army and Bashar al-Assad's allies, including members of Hezbollah. On Friday, Ashton Carter, the US Secretary of Defense, assessed that the reason for Iran's 'influence' in the region is due to the presence of Iranian forces in ground battles.