A few days ago, the Syrian regime closed a recruitment office established by Hezbollah near the Sayyeda Zainab shrine in the Damascus countryside. This office aimed to attract volunteers to join the “Islamic Resistance in Lebanon” in its fight against Israel on the southern front.
Hezbollah and the Syrian Regime: A History of Divergence and Strategic Alliance
Despite the strategic partnership between Bashar al-Assad’s regime and Hezbollah in suppressing the Syrian revolution since 2011, the Syrian government has firmly refused to allow Hezbollah to recruit Syrians for its ranks in the conflict against Israel.
Security pressures to close the office
A security source revealed to Syria TV that officers from the National Security Office recently met with Hezbollah’s leader, Hajj Abu Ali Yasser, who oversees the recruitment office. The meeting aimed to persuade him to close the office and refrain from any overt recruitment activities.
During the meeting, the delegation delivered a verbal message from Major General Kifah Melhem, head of the National Security Bureau, emphasizing the immediate need to shut down the office due to the military situation in Syria.
The message outlined that “Syria is not in a position to open a new front in the south,” especially given concerns that any confrontation with Israel could escalate and directly impact the Syrian border in the Golan region. This escalation might compel the regime to declare general mobilization amid various internal challenges.
The delegation also informed Yasser of intelligence indicators suggesting that factions and organizations in areas outside the Syrian regime’s control might exploit the situation to launch attacks against the Syrian army.
Moreover, the members of the delegation issued a veiled warning: any Syrian citizen who volunteers to fight outside the country without the regime’s approval would be considered wanted by security forces for involvement in “terrorist” activities. Their names would be circulated at border crossings for arrest, and all individuals and networks involved in recruitment would be pursued without prior coordination with the relevant authorities.
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.
