Two members of the Assad regime’s Military Security forces were killed on Thursday in Daraa amid an escalation in southern Syria as the regime and Iran prepare a military attack.
A commander with the rank of lieutenant, and another volunteer fighter from Military Security, were shot dead by unknown attackers while passing along the highway between the towns of Taybeh and Saida in rural eastern Daraa, according to the Horan Free League.
The assassination comes at a tense time for Daraa province as the regime, which controls the Fourth Division prepares to wage an attack with support from Iranian militias. Military reinforcements and soldiers have also arrived in the area, a result of the security tensions caused by the killing of nine regime security personnel by a former opposition commander.
According to the Horan Free League, pro-Assad forces are still arriving in Daraa city, among them military reinforcements from the Fourth Division. New reinforcements arrived Thursday morning, including dozens of armored vehicles, tanks and military vehicles filled with soldiers. Some have been dispersed to the Panorama sports stadium in downtown Daraa.
Videos emerged of the military reinforcements as they passed along the highway near the town of Khirbet Ghazaleh east of Daraa, and crossed the Sharaa checkpoint leading into Daraa city.
Daraa al-Balad and the city of Tafas in western Daraa saw popular protests late Wednesday night and early Thursday morning against the arrival of heavy regime and Iranian military reinforcements to the area. Demonstrators raised signs denouncing Iranian incursion there.
Local notables, actors and clans in Daraa, as well as the Central Committee in Rural Western Daraa and the Daraa al-Balad Committee and tribes of eastern Daraa, released a joint statement rejecting the arrival of regime military reinforcements as well as their deployment outside of their barracks. The statement warned against an attack by the regime and Iran in Syria’s south.
The statement also condemned the kidnappings and assassinations that Daraa has witnessed, holding the perpetrators accountable and calling on Russian guarantors to assume responsibility for preventing a regime and Iranian attack on southern Syria.
According to monitoring by Alsouria Net, most of the assassinations over the past two months in Daraa have targeted personnel from Assad’s forces and allied militias. A small number of the victims had previously fought within opposition factions.
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.
