No Change in Iran’s Policy toward Advisory Presence in Syria

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said today that two of its senior officers have been killed in Syria, just days after the death of a general from the elite unit. Considered an important forum for discussion of global security issues, MSC’s Tehran gathering features a few 60 representatives including the German, Iraqi, nad Afghan foreign ministers, United Nations representatives, European lawmakers and officials, as well as governmental representatives from various Arab states.

Neither the reporter nor the agencies said where the deaths had occurred.

A Washington-based analyst believes that the ISIS killing of a commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards served to underscore the extent of Iranian involvement in Syria and the dire straits in which Assad finds himself, according to CNN.

At least 250,000 people have been killed since the Syria conflict began in early 2011, with 7.6 million internally displaced and over four million having fled to nearby countries.

The United States and Russian Federation were to hold new talks Wednesday on avoiding incidents in the skies of Syria, as regime forces launched heavy attacks against rebels near Damascus.

Brig. Gen. Hossein Hamedani was killed outside Aleppo, Syria, where he was reportedly advising the Syrian army in its fight against extremists, CNN said citing Iranian state media.

Alaeddin Boroujerdi, the head of an influential parliamentary committee on national security and foreign policy, reiterated his country’s full support for the Syrian government, stressing that a political solution is the only way for Syria to emerge from the current crisis.

Iran deployed hundreds of Iranian soldiers to northern and central Syria in an effort to support Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in an anti-rebel ground offensive.

Clearly, reaching out to Iran on Syria and other regional crises is a prudent step by the West, given Iran’s regional clout and geostrategic position, particularly by the refugee-hit Europeans who can no longer afford to de-prioritize the Syrian crisis.

US Defence Secretary Ash Carter said the talks between the USA and Russian militaries would aim to ensure Moscow follows “basic safety procedures” over Syria.