Increased attacks on Iranian militias and soldiers in Syria

Several members of Iranian or Iran-backed militias have been killed or wounded in Syria in recent days. The attacks have increased in recent weeks. Iran supports ruler Bashar al-Assad in the Syrian civil war and is active in Syria with soldiers and mercenaries. There is a massive Iranian presence, especially in the east of the country around the province of Deir ez-Zor.
Last week, Thursday, July 13, unknown assailants on a motorcycle attacked an Iranian hospital not far from the headquarters of the Iranian Armed Forces in eastern Deir ez-Zor. One member of the Iran-backed militia ‘Liwa Fatemiyoun’ was killed and two others seriously wounded. The militia has been involved in the Syrian civil war since 2014 and is made up mostly of Shia Afghans.
Two days later, a member of the Iranian militia ‘Usoud al-Sharqiya’ and three members of militias backed by the Syrian regime were injured in gunfire in the city of Deir ez-Zor. The fighting ended with the intervention of Syrian and Iranian soldiers.
The following Sunday there was an attack on an Iranian patrol in the Syrian desert near Palmyra. The Iranian armed forces lost a considerable amount of material.
Iranian and Iran-backed militias were attacked in various parts of Syria on Tuesday. According to an Iranian Armed Forces source, two members of the ‘Kattaib Sayyid al-Shuhada’ were killed and four wounded in the town of al-Mayadin east of Deir ez-Zor. The attackers were on motorcycles. At the same time there was another attack on the Iranian hospital east of Deir ez-Zor. Two guards were injured in the attack. In the south of Homs, Hezbollah’s headquarters were attacked with rockets. One fighter was killed and another injured.
Israeli airstrikes are believed to have hit military targets around Damascus on Wednesday. Military depots of the Lebanese Hezbollah and the Syrian government are said to have been hit. Israel accuses Iran of expanding its influence in the region and supplying Hezbollah and the Syrian regime.
During the night from Thursday to Friday, a clash broke out between the militia ‘Liwa Fatemiyoun’ and members of the local tribe ‘al-Qar’ in the town of al-Qoriya east of Deir ez-Zor. Two militia members were killed and four injured in the fierce fighting. Iranian forces intervened and ended the fighting. Since then there have been raids in the city and the surrounding area, during which dozens of people were arrested by the militia.
The civil war in Syria seems to be intensifying again. The terrorist organization ISIS is also active in the east and south of the country, where Iran has a massive presence. Iran is attempting to establish itself in the region through military, economic and religious means.