By Samah Abdel Fattah | 2025-09-04

Four suspected Iranian operatives were arrested in southern Syria, delivering what analysts are calling a fresh blow to Tehran's proxy network.

The July 2 raids in the villages of Umm al-Lux and Ain al-Batsali yielded weapons caches and exposed Iran's broader strategy.

"Over the past decades, Iran has recruited hundreds of local criminals to serve as immediate and future tools for its operations," Sheyar Turko, an expert on the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), told Al-Fassel.

Intelligence assessments suggest the detainees were connected either to Branch 4000 of the IRGC Intelligence Organization or to Unit 840 of the IRGC's Quds Force.

Unit 840 previously planted explosives along the Israel-Syria border in August and November 2020, according to the Alma Research and Education Center.

Tehran deliberately positioned these cells along Syria's frontier, Turko said, using their proximity to fuel ongoing conflict and ensure regional instability serves Iranian interests.

Iran's fading grip

The arrests signal escalating pressure on Iran's Syria operations and subversion network following Bashar al-Assad's December collapse.

The IRGC never cut contact with its southern Syria cells, according to Turko.

As the Iranian regime scrambles for leverage after battlefield setbacks, it has sought to reactivate dormant cells.

"Iran manipulates the remaining cells as cards to serve its strategic and political interests," Turko said.

This reflects a broader IRGC playbook across the region.

"It is not surprising that Iran would use its cells in Syria to carry out operations that undermine the stability achieved in the region," he added.

"This is a traditional IRGC method -- destabilizing countries like Lebanon and Syria, where it is under unprecedented pressure -- to minimize political losses."

Lebanon-based Hizbullah helped the IRGC establish a network combining smuggling rackets and regional terrorist activity, Nizar Abu Ali, a media activist from Sweida, told Al-Fassel.

"The cells operate purely on financial gain," Abu Ali said. "The IRGC exploits their need for money and influence."

Civilians in southern Syria have largely welcomed the raids and arrests, he added.

They view those detained as "smugglers and outlaws recruited by the IRGC," rather than the "resistance fighters" Iran claims them to be.

"The raids will have a positive impact, and the results will quickly become apparent," Abu Ali predicted.

He emphasized that dismantling these cells strikes directly at Iran's proxies, who "operate based on financial interests at the expense of civilians in southern Syria."