Reports from Iranian media indicate that the fifth commando of the Islamic Republic of Iran’s Army has been killed in clashes in Syria in support of Bashar Assad’s forces, the country’s president.
The Farsi News Agency, close to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, announced on Wednesday, April 14, the name of this commando as “Hamdollah Bakhshande,” who according to the media outlet “was a fighter from the Islamic Republic of Iran’s Army who was sent to Syria to defend the shrine of Lady Zainab and was martyred while fighting takfiri terrorists.”
The news of the death of the fifth Iranian Army commando is announced on the same day that the commander of the Army’s Ground Forces confirmed the death of four other commandos of this force during the current week.
The Tasnim News Agency, close to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, announced the names and military ranks of these casualties as “Colonel Mojtaba Zolfaqarnasab,” “Captain Morteza Zarrharand,” “Second Lieutenant Mojtaba Yadallehi Manfred,” and “Mohsen Ghoutaslou.”
The news of the deployment of Army commandos to Syria’s internal war, which is taking place between the forces of President Bashar Assad and his armed opponents, particularly ISIS and the Al-Nusra Front, was first announced on April 5, 2016, by Ali Arasteh, Deputy Coordinator of the Islamic Republic of Iran’s Army Ground Forces.
He stated that Army commandos would be deployed to Syria as “advisors.”
The majority of these commandos are from the 65th Nohed Brigade (Army Special Airborne Forces, known as the Green Berets).
Some conservative websites have analyzed the reasons for the deployment of Iran’s Green Beret forces to the Syrian front. For instance, the “Hambandi” website claimed that “alongside the presence of experienced Revolutionary Guard advisors in Syria, a public demand formed within the Islamic Republic of Iran’s Army for presence in Syria, constantly demanding from Army commanders participation in the fronts of truth against falsehood and defense of the sanctuary of the Hashemite lady.”
The website introduced commandos as “experienced military groups of Iran’s Army” and wrote that the “Nohed Brigade” has the capability to perform missions including “guerrilla warfare, partisan operations, conducting parachute jumps and free fall operations in land, air, water, desert and mountainous areas.”
The “Hambandi” website quoted an Army commander saying that “the forces of this brigade… undergo courses such as hostage rescue, parachute instructor training, sniper training, special operations, diving, and virtually all courses that a guerrilla fighter needs to learn.”
Over the past year, since the Islamic Republic has adopted a policy of announcing casualty figures of its military forces in the Syria war, Iranian news agencies regularly publish reports on the number of military casualties in this conflict.
In addition to forces from the Revolutionary Guard Corps, Basij, and the Islamic Republic of Iran’s Army present in the Syrian clashes, Pakistani forces in the form of the “Zainabiyoun” Brigade and Afghan forces in the form of the “Fatimiyoun” Brigade also fight in this war alongside Bashar Assad’s forces and Hezbollah of Lebanon.
