Eurasia Press & News
On Tuesday, joint forces of the Syrian regime’s Intelligence Services raided homes of members of the 47th local militia of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard in the city of Al Bukamal, east of Deir-ez-Zor.
The Eye of the Euphrates correspondent said that the campaign began yesterday with the participation of State Security, Political Security, Military Security, and Air Intelligence patrols. The raid targeted the homes of militia members of the 47th Regiment, who could be considered settlement members, since most of them were former fighters in the ranks of the Islamic State (ISIS), the Al-Nusra Front, and the Free Army, and those who returned to the city through tribal guarantees on the condition of volunteering with the Iranian militias.
The correspondent added that the initial number of detainees from the regiment reached nearly 30, while the raiding forces arrested a number of young civilians and released them after making sure that they were not affiliated with the regiment.
As per the same source, the raiding forces entered the homes of some of the members and did not find them there. 47th Regiment members attempted to flee towards the town of Al-Asharah and then via smuggling routes to the SDF-controlled areas on the opposite bank of the Euphrates. The 47th Regiment did not respond to the campaign that targeted its members.
The correspondent confirmed that the Iranian Revolutionary Guard circulated a list of the names of 27 wanted individuals. The names are likely to have been those of National Defense Militia members.
The list of wanted people was issued by the Iran Friends Office in Al Bukamal, which is affiliated with the Lebanese Hezbollah, and was circulated at the Al-Sukkariyya, Al-Heri, and Al-Ashayer checkpoints of the Revolutionary Guards, so the checkpoints would double down on security scrutiny.
The correspondent confirmed that the Revolutionary Guard’s campaign has not, so far, resulted in the arrest of any wanted person. The campaign is likely to be a response to the Syrian regime’s campaign against Iranian militias in the region, with the support of Russia.
The tension between the two parties in Al Bukamal and its countryside reached high levels after a meeting that took place a while ago, in which the Syrian regime forces asked Iranian militias to hand over wanted members of the 47th Regiment who are accused of “destabilizing Al Bukamal,” which was rejected by the regiment.
