Iran News Round Up

A selection of the latest news stories and editorials published in Iranian news outlets, compiled by AEI Critical Threats Project Iran Analysts Marie Donovan, Paul Bucala, and Caitlin Shayda Pendleton with contributors Ken Hawrey and Alice Naghshineh. To receive this daily newsletter, please subscribe online.

(E) = Article in English

Excerpts of these translations may only be used with the expressed consent of the authors.

Key takeaway: Over 13 IRGC 25th Karbala Division members were killed and 21 were wounded during an opposition offensive on the town of Khan Tuman located south of Aleppo. Supreme National Security Council Secretary Ali Shamkhani vowed retaliation for the attack.

Iranian news outlets also reported that an IRGC member from Tehran province, an IRGC brigadier general second class, an IRGC Quds Force commander, and a “large number” of casualties from the Afghan Shia militia Fatimiyoun Brigade were killed during the fighting in and around Khan Tuman. Many of the IRGC members killed in Syria over the past two months have been from Mazandaran province, where the IRGC 25th Karbala Division is based. The large number of casualties from the 25th Karbala Division supports the Critical Threats Project’s earlier assessment that Iran has been deploying combat units in Syria drawn from its conventional brigades and divisions and embedding them with other pro-regime forces on the frontlines. For more on Iran’s military operations in Syria, see “Iran's Evolving Way of War: How the IRGC Fights in Syria.”

Supreme National Security Council Secretary Ali Shamkhani vowed retaliation for the attack in Khan Tuman, claiming that Russia, Syria, and Hezbollah will not leave the attack in Khan Tuman unanswered. Shamkhani stated that the opposition forces were “abusing the goodwill of Iran in the ceasefire.” Foreign Ministry Spokesman Hossein Jaberi Ansari stated that “rival fighting factions” violated the ceasefire in Khan Tuman, thereby demonstrating “that they [the rival factions] do not believe in a political solution to the ongoing crisis.”

Defense Minister IRGC Brigadier General Hossein Dehghan contradicted Armed Forces Deputy Chief of Staff Brigadier General Ali Abdollahi’s claim on May 9 that Iran tested a ballistic missile “with a range of 2,000 kilometers” two weeks ago. When asked about the test, Dehghan responded, “We have not tested a missile with that range as reported in the media.” U.S. State Department Deputy Spokesman Mark Toner claimed that the U.S. government would raise the launch in the UN Security Council if confirmed. 

AEI Must-Reads

• Paul Bucala analyzes the details and significance of the Artesh’s deployment to Syria in “The Artesh in Syria: A fundamental shift in Iranian hard power.”
   
• The Critical Threats Project has also translated an interview with the Artesh deputy commander on the deployment to Syria that hints at a transformation in the orientation of Iran’s conventional military. Read the translation here.

• Follow the latest developments from Iran’s elections, including the results of the April 29 runoff elections, in “Iran Elections Tracker: Updates and Analysis.”

• Matthew McInnis discusses the economic challenges facing President Hassan Rouhani as Iran’s newly elected parliament assumes office in his latest blog, “Will Iran’s new parliament be any better for Rouhani?”

Casualties in Iraq and Syria

• IRGC 25th Karbala Division takes heavy casualties south of Aleppo. Iranian news outlets reported the deaths of over 13 soldiers of the IRGC 25th Karbala Division after opposition groups seized the town of Khan Tuman, located south of Aleppo. An IRGC spokesman confirmed that 21 other soldiers from this division were also wounded in the fight. Pro-regime forces supplemented by IRGC troops captured the town from opposition groups in December 2015.  (Dana) (Alef)
  • ABNA reported that an IRGC member from Tehran was also killed in fighting near Khan Tuman. (ABNA)
  • A “large number” of casualties belonged to the Afghan Shia militia Fatimiyoun Brigade, according to Iranian news outlets. Exact numbers, however, have not yet been released. (Jamejam Online)

• Principlist parliamentarian: Five or six Iranians captured in Khan Tuman. National Security and Foreign Policy Parliamentary Commission member Mohammad Esmail Kowsari told reporters that “based on the latest numbers...five or six Iranians were also captured” during fighting with opposition forces in Khan Tuman. Pictures circulated online appear to show several Iranians in captivity. (Jamejam Online) (Jamejan Online)
   
• IRGC Quds Force commander killed. Shafi Shafiee was an IRGC Quds Force commander from Gilan province who was reportedly killed during the opposition offensive on Khan Tuman. (Tasnim News Agency)
   
• Retired IRGC general killed in Khan Tuman. IRGC Brig. Gen. 2C Javad Durbin was from Gilan province and retired from the IRGC in 2011. He reportedly traveled to Syria in April 2016 to serve as an “advisor.” (Tasnim News Agency)
   
• Four Fatimiyoun fighters buried in Mashhad. Iranian news outlets reported that four members of the Afghan Shia militia Fatimiyoun Brigade were buried in Mashhad on May 9. (hajghasem.ir)
   

Reactions to Khan Tuman Offensive

• Former IRGC Commander: “The takfiris will soon pay dearly for the attack on Khan Tuman.” Former IRGC Commander Maj. Gen. Mohsen Rezaei warned that opposition forces will “pay dearly” for the offensive on Khan Tuman. He also accused Saudi Arabia and Turkey for providing support to the opposition fighters. (Tasnim News Agency)
   
• Shamkhani: Russia, Syria, and Hezbollah will not leave the attack in Khan Tuman unanswered. Supreme National Security Council Secretary Ali Shamkhani vowed retaliation for the attack in Khan Tuman and claimed that the opposition forces were “abusing the goodwill of Iran in the ceasefire.” He added:
  • “The Islamic Republic was not opposed to the principles of the ceasefire plan when it was proposed, but believed that it had structural deficiencies. The Khan Tuman incident shows that the concerns raised by Iran were completely correct and based on the realities of the battlefield. [We considered] that the ceasefire would only be an opportunity for the government supporters of the terrorist groups [in Syria] to rebuild these groups.” (Asr Iran)
     
• Foreign Ministry: Syrian opposition violated the ceasefire in Khan Tuman. Foreign Ministry Spokesman Hossein Jaberi Ansari addressed the fighting near the Syrian village of Khan Tuman, where 13 IRGC soldiers were reported killed over the weekend, during a press conference on May 9. Ansari accused the “rival fighting factions” of violating the ceasefire in Khan Tuman and thereby demonstrating “that they do not believe in a political solution to the ongoing crisis.”
  • On an independent Kurdistan: Ansari also addressed recent comments by Masrour Barzani, the intelligence chief for the Iraqi Kurdistan Regional Government, calling for an independent Kurdistan and talks to reassure Turkey and Iraq that an independent Kurdistan would not destabilize their borders. Ansari reiterated Iran’s insistence on a “unified” Iraq, stating, “Independence, unity, and Iraq’s territorial integrity guarantees the interests of the Iraqi people and of all countries, regionally and worldwide.”
  • On Saudi Arabia: Ansari reiterated that Iran will not authorize its citizens to attend the Hajj pilgrimage if Saudi Arabia does not address its concerns about steps taken to ensure pilgrims’ safety following the September 2015 Hajj stampede. Ansari stated that “the likelihood of sending Iranian pilgrims on the Hajj is not high if the current process continues.”
  • On Muqtada al Sadr: Ansari stated that Iraqi Shia cleric and Sadrist Trend leader Muqtada al Sadr is not on an “official” trip to Iran. He reportedly arrived in Iran on May 2. Ansari stated, “There has not been a formal trip for formal negotiations and consultations with Iranian officials and Muqtada al Sadr recently.” He added that Sadr may be visiting relatives who live in Iran. (ISNA) (Mehr News Agency) (E) (Fars News Agency)

Military and Security

• Defense minister denies that Iran test-fired 2,000 km-range missile. Defense Minister IRGC Brig. Gen. Hossein Dehghan contradicted Armed Forces Deputy Chief of Staff Brig. Gen. Ali Abdollahi’s May 9 claim that Iran tested a ballistic missile “with a range of 2,000 kilometers” two weeks ago. When asked about the test on the sidelines of a memorial for soldiers killed in Iraq and Syria, Dehghan responded, “We have not tested a missile with that range as reported in the media.” (Press TV) (E) (Fars News Agency) (E) (Defa Press) 
   
• Khamenei orders police to enforce morality. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei implicitly addressed the controversy over a new 7,000-member police unit assembled in part to report moral transgressions, including improper veiling, during a speech on May 8. Khamenei stated that police should “ignore the opposition of certain people” who object to police involvement in matters of morality. President Hassan Rouhani is among those who have criticized the police unit. (Leader.ir)

Domestic Politics

• Mousavi’s brother survives knife attack. Mir Mahmoud Mousavi, the brother of Mir Hossein Mousavi, a reformist presidential candidate in the contested 2009 presidential elections, was reportedly attacked by three men with knives on May 7. Reformist news outlets referred to the attack as an “assassination attempt” and stated that it was the “third attempt” on his life in the past ten days. Interior Minister Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli ordered an investigation into the attack. Reformist newspaper Shargh noted that while “officials suspect that the incident was a robbery and not security-related,” Mir Mahmoud Mousavi’s phone and wallet were not stolen. (Kalame) (Shargh)

Regional Developments and Diplomacy

• Velayati meets with Assad in Damascus. Senior Foreign Policy Advisor to the Supreme Leader Ali Akbar Velayati met with Syrian President Bashar al Assad in Damascus on May 6. Velayati told Assad, “The epic defense that the Syrian nation and government is carrying out under your leadership is unprecedented in history. Of course it has ups and downs, but it is on the rise.” (Asr Iran)

• Parliamentarians sign petition for Rouhani to “reconsider” nuclear deal. A total of 103 parliamentarians signed a petition calling for President Hassan Rouhani to set a deadline for ending Iran’s implementation of the nuclear agreement if the U.S. fails to end its “mischievousness, disloyalty, obstruction, and noncompliance in the lifting of sanctions and creation of a poisoned atmosphere for the agreement’s atmosphere.” The 103 members of the outgoing Parliament constitute over a third of the 290-member Parliament. (IRNA)