Iran sends 15,000 troops to support Assad in Syria

Examiner.com

The Iranian government has sent 15,000 fighters to Syria to help the Syrian government.

The force, made up of Iranians, Iraqis and Afghanis, arrived in the Damascus region and in the province of Latakia, a Lebanese political source told The Daily Star.

The fighters hope to reverse recent setbacks Syrian government troops have experienced on the battlefield by the end of June, the source said. The fighters are expected to spearhead an effort to seize areas of Idlib province, which has been taken over by a rebel jihadi-coalition.

Gen. Qasem Soleimani, the commander of Iran's elite Quds force, was in Latakia prepping for the effort, according to the source. Soleimani promised a "surprise" from Tehran and Damascus.

"The world will be surprised by what we and the Syrian military leadership are preparing for the coming days," Iran's official IRNA state news agency quoted Soleimani as saying Tuesday.

Syrian President Bashar Assad agreed to the plan, though reluctantly, the Lebanese source said. Help from Iran is an attempt to boost the falling morale of regime supporters, the source said, in addition to helping to improve Tehran's leverage as the deadline for a nuclear deal looms at the end of June.

As of February, the death toll from roughly four years of civl war in Syria was around 210,060, though the real figure is likely much higher, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.