US Strike in Syria Kills a Fatemiyoun Commander and Three Members

The Telegram channel "Modafeen Haram" - Defenders of the Shrine- reported that Ali Hosseini, Hamzeh Alavi, Mohammad Ali Akbari, and Mohammadreza Sadat Alavi, four members of the Fatemiyoun brigade, were killed in a US strike in Syria.

Ali Hosseini was said to be one of the commanders of the Fatemiyoun brigade in eastern Syria.

Published images show him alongside Qasem Soleimani, the dead commander of the Quds forces.

The US military conducted a strike in eastern Syria early on Saturday, targeting militants affiliated with the Islamic Republic of Iran. The US stated that this attack was in response to the killing of their soldiers in Jordan.

Last week, three US soldiers were killed in drone attacks by Iran-supported groups in northeastern Jordan.

The Fatemiyoun Brigade, under the supervision of Iran's Quds Force, consists of Afghan migrants in Iran and had been sent to fight in Syria since several years.

The previous Afghan government in 2020 had asked the Islamic Republic of Iran to dissolve the Fatemiyoun brigade. Afghan officials at that time emphasised that the use of Afghan migrants in proxy wars is inconsistent with international laws.

Observers and human rights activists have consistently criticised the Islamic Republic for exploiting the dire residency and living conditions of Afghan refugees in Iran to recruit them to participate in regional conflicts, including in Syria.

Fars News Agency, affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, published a brief biography of one of the Fatemiyoun members killed in the recent US strike in Syria.

It has been reported that 65-year-old Hamzeh Alavi, originally from Parwan province in Afghanistan, was a veteran member of the Fatemiyoun brigade, killed on Saturday, in Syria.

According to Fars, Alavi had also participated in the Iran-Iraq war while serving in the Iranian military forces.