Will IRGC-established militia in Syria sabotage de-escalation agreement?

The Iranian Revolutionary Guards established a new militia named Brigade 313 in South Syria, it has been revealed.

Syrian opposition figures warned that the militia, which consists of young men from Daraa and which is trained and funded by the Iranian Revolutionary Guards, aims to sabotage the de-escalation agreement in South Syria.

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The name of the militia is linked to sectarian concepts, which Tehran is trying to solidify in the region. Syrian chief opposition negotiator Mohammed Sabra said the militia’s composition falls within the context of Iran’s divisive policies in the region.

The newly-formed militia is headquartered in the Christian majority city of Izra but its fighters consist of Shiites from South Syria. Sabra said Iran formed the brigade on a certain sectarian basis while ignoring the rest of the region’s components.

Hamburg agreement

Iran is trying to move around the Hamburg agreement between Russia and the US and which impose keeping Iranian forces and militias affiliated with it at least 35 kilometers away from Syrian-Jordanian borders.

The militia’s headquarters in Izra is around 30 kilometers away from the borders with Jordan and Israel, which poses a direct threat to the agreement between Washington and Moscow.

This article is also available in Arabic.