Iran Mobilizes 4,000 New Fighters, Hezbollah Recruits Child Soldiers in
Syria
Fatah Al-Rahman Youssef Asharq Al Awsat 22 July 2016
http://english.aawsat.com/2016/07/article55354933/iran-recruits-4-thousand-new-fighters-hezbollah-recruits-child-soldiers-syria

Riyadh – Four thousand Iranian fighters arrived in Aleppo last week to join
the 80,000 Iranian Revolutionary Guards and Afghani forces in Syria.

Member of the delegation of the High Negotiations Committee (NHC) Assad
al-Zubi declared that Iran is trying to cover up its losses by mobilizing
new members.

He added that the so-called Hezbollah had recruited a number of child
soldiers to partake in the combat as well.

Zubi told Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper that he received news confirming the
arrival of 4,000 Iranian fighters to Aleppo. He explained that the fighters
were being trained south of Damascus and the majority of them are Iranian or
Afghans carrying the Iranian nationality.

He explained that Iran is resorting to recruiting new members to cover its
losses which it prefers to keep undisclosed.

He added that the latest statistics confirm that 80,000 IRGC and Afghan
Forces members were brought to Syria in addition to a number of Iraqi
fighters.

“It’s about time the international community has said its word to fight Iran
and its supporters like Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) and the terrorist
Hezbollah,” he added.

Regarding the political transition, Zubi said it is not a new idea but it
has been dealt with.

He explained that the former deal included the vision of NHC for a political
solution. He added that NHC presented the vision to U.N. Special Envoy
Staffan de Mistura in Geneva.

Zubi explained that certain parts of the document needed explanations and
consultations with other countries. After than that, the document was ready
to clarify the proposed political solution.

The document, prepared by Syrian experts, includes the reconstruction and
national reconciliation process and has been widely supported by Syrians and
militant factions.

Zubi explained that this indicates that the proposed solution is accepted by
all.

“It is expected to have a unanimous vote on the proposed solution at the end
of August to begin the political transformation process. De Mistura is
currently holding meetings with foreign ministers of the EU which means
there is a need to invest time in preparing for any new movement and
continue negotiating all articles of that document,” Zubi told Asharq
Al-Awsat.