Popular demonstrations took place in various parts of the countryside of Deir ez-Zor, Syria, at the beginning of this week, denouncing the control of Iranian-backed militias over parts of that province, which lies on the border with Iraq.
Those demonstrations took place in towns located in the countryside of the province under the control of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which is supported by the international coalition led by the United States against ISIS. They called for expelling the militias backed by Tehran from their areas.
Local sources told Majalla that "the demonstrations are spontaneous, and the participants are calling for the fighters to return to their homes," after the militias backed by Tehran seized control of the parts of the province that were under the control of the Syrian regime forces.
The SDF controls parts of the countryside of Deir ez-Zor while the regime forces control the greater part of the governorate center and its affiliated towns. Meanwhile, the militias backed by Tehran are present in the parts under the regime's control.
"These demonstrations are made for security and societal reasons," said political researcher Muhammad Mohsen Abu Al-Nour, head of the Arab Forum for Iranian Policy Analysis (AFAIP).
He stressed that "protesters were aware of Iranian goals in the long run, and therefore they went out in these demonstrations to denounce the Iranian presence in their areas”.
Here is the full text of the interview that Majalla conducted by phone with the international expert on Iranian affairs.
Q: There were demonstrations in the countryside of Deir ez-Zor governorate with protesters demanding the removal of Iranian-backed militias from their areas. What do you think has prompted residents to go out in these demonstrations?
A: With regard to the recent demonstrations of the people of Deir ez-Zor governorate, they, of course, come in the context of their demands for security and improvement of their economic living conditions in addition to getting their political and social rights, especially as they demanded the departure of the militias supported by Tehran from their areas.
Obviously, the demonstrators do not want Iranian influence in Deir ez-Zor province, especially since Tehran is working on a policy of demographic change in those areas and the garrison of loyalist militias in them.
Q: Are there other reasons behind the emergence of these demonstrations?
A: It is also known that the people of Deir ez-Zor are of the Sunni component, as is the majority of the Syrian society while Iran brought sectarian militias from Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Q: Why did the protests take place at this particular time?
A: Iran wants these militias to be part of Syrian society and not simply be an emergency situation that changes with changing circumstances, and of course this is unacceptable.
But the problem is that Deir ez-Zor is located within two areas of influence, one of which is under the control of the SDF and the other is under the control of the forces of the Syrian regime which is fully supported by Iranian militias.
The people of Deir ez-Zor realized that Tehran wants to position itself in their areas strategically and on a long-term basis, to be part of the future of Syria, not merely to deal with the current problems regarding the situation prevailing in Syria since March 2011.
Therefore, demonstrations took place in the countryside of Deir ez-Zor denouncing the Iranian presence due to the awareness of protesters in this strategic point regarding Tehran’s continued presence in the Syrian future.
Q. Tehran has many armed militias in Syria and they are located in sectors that are adjacent to vital areas such as the borders with Israel, Jordan, Lebanon and Iraq. Therefore, do these militias pose a threat to regional security in addition to menacing the Syrian interior?
A: Of course, it creates a very great danger and it has already posed a threat to international peace and security, not only in the Middle East. It has created heresies that other parties may follow. The evidence for this is that Turkey resorted to sea, air and land militias during the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in the fall of 2020 and Iran created a great problem back then.
After thirty or fifty years, historians will say that Iran is the one that invented the idea of portable sectarian and loyalist militias moving from one country to another to carry out military and strategic missions, and this poses a very great danger to security.
Not only on an international and regional level, but at the level of the Syrian interior, Iran destabilized the country and does not want to make compromise solutions in the next stage.
It wants to keep Syrian President Bashar al-Assad personally as part of Syria’s future at any price through a settlement such as the Sochi and Astana agreements. It is looking for an economic role, as in the real estate and telecommunications sectors which is also a great danger
