Outside the capital Damascus, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) militia announced that it was inviting applications to join its ranks in several villages and towns in the western countryside of Damascus in exchange for small salaries.
Local sources said that this step by the IRGC comes because it needs to recruit hundreds of volunteers to cover the acute shortage within its ranks. The shortage follows cases of defection and escape, as well as hundreds of fighters dying during military combat operations in the Badia region.
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The local sources explained that a recruit’s monthly salary is estimated at 500,000 Syrian pounds, meaning it does not exceed US$80. This salary structure takes advantage of the extreme poverty experienced by most young people and the growing spread of unemployment.
It is noteworthy that the Iranian militias and the Lebanese Hezbollah militia are widely spread in most Syrian governorates and the capital of Damascus in particular. These militias include in their ranks hundreds of local and foreign fighters and are active in smuggling weapons and drugs between Syria and Lebanon, where smuggling operations rank amongst the militia’s most important financial resources.
This article was translated and edited by The Syrian Observer. The Syrian Observer has not verified the content of this story. Responsibility for the information and views set out in this article lies entirely with the author.
