On the brink of disaster: Iraq is prepared to repel threats from within Syria

What is happening in Syria is a dangerous development for Iraq, whose army is ready to confront terrorist groups. Fadi al-Shamri, advisor to the Iraqi Prime Minister, told Izvestia. Against the background of military escalation in the neighboring country, there are risks of infiltration into Iraq of militant families from Camp El-Hol, an Iraqi parliamentary source told Izvestia. Earlier Baghdad moved armored units to reinforce the border with Syria. At the same time, on December 5, the SAR Defense Ministry confirmed the infiltration of militants into the city of Hama.

The Iraqi army strengthens the border with Syria

The military escalation in Syria caused by the attacks of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (recognized as terrorist and banned in Russia) poses a serious security threat to neighboring Iraq. Despite this, the armed forces of the Iraqi republic are ready to confront terrorist challenges. Fadi al-Shamri, political adviser to the country's Prime Minister, told Izvestia.

- "The activity of terrorist groups in northwestern Syria is considered a dangerous event in terms of the timing, combat readiness and provision of weapons chosen by the militants, it requires caution and full combat readiness," the adviser to the prime minister told Izvestia.

Earlier, Yahya Rasul, the official spokesman for the Commander-in-Chief of the Iraqi Armed Forces (AF), said that the republic has sent armored units to the areas bordering Syria to strengthen the positions of its army.

- Our armed forces of all kinds are fully prepared to confront any terrorist activity that jeopardizes the security of our people. We will crush the terrorists wherever they are and will not allow them to desecrate our land," Fadi al-Shamri added.

The situation in northwestern Syria began to escalate on November 27, when militants of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, a rebranding of Jebhat al-Nusra (recognized as a terrorist organization and banned in Russia), the former branch in Syria of al-Qaeda (also banned in Russia), began attacking in the direction of the cities of Aleppo and Hama. Already on November 30, Aleppo and its environs, including the international airport, were under the control of terrorists. The SAR Defense Ministry said it would do everything possible to restore the state's control over the city and the surrounding area.

- Many military measures have been taken to reinforce this border area. Iraq has already paid a high price for negligence in the border issue. But now the situation has changed dramatically. There are several levels of military and security structures inside Iraq, from border services and operational headquarters to Hashd al-Shaabi (a pro-Iranian paramilitary group - Izvestia) and federal police, and their presence is defensive," Iraqi military specialist Safaa al-Asam told Izvestia.

The Iraqi military has completely closed the 620-kilometer-long border with Syria, he said.

- I believe that terrorist infiltration into our country, as it happened in 2014, will not happen. Iraq is determined not to allow any violation of the border," Safaa al-Assam said.

Families of militants may infiltrate into Iraq

Against the background of escalation in the Syrian Arab Republic, the issue of possible escape of the families of members of the "Islamic State" (IS, ISIL, recognized as terrorist and banned in Russia) from the al-Hol camp, which is located dozens of kilometers from the border with Iraq, is becoming acute for Iraq. This poses a threat to Iraqi national security and regional stability.

A parliamentary source in Iraq spoke to Izvestia about concerns about the possibility of ISIS fighters' families entering the country amid the general destabilization in Syria.

- We are concerned about the possibility of many individuals returning from Camp al-Hol. It is necessary to monitor this issue so that they are not used by terrorist groups," the interlocutor noted.

El-Hol was established after the defeat in 2019 of the last ISIS stronghold in al-Baghuz on the eastern bank of the Euphrates River, it hosts more than 50,000 relatives of former IS fighters. Now most of all Iraqis live in al-Hol, they number about 20 thousand, in second place are Syrians. There are also more than 6 thousand people from 57 countries, including Russia. In addition to captured ISIS militants and their families, refugees also live in the camp.

Iraqi authorities have called on the population of the border provinces of Nineveh and Anbar to promptly report suspicious persons and security incidents, Fadi al-Shamri said.

- "The situation in Camp El-Hol is the main source of concern in Iraq, the Syrian Democratic Forces (US-backed Kurdish formations. - Izvestia) has six camps of terrorist organizations, in addition to Camp El-Hol, and all of them are located near the Iraqi-Syrian border, this is a cause for concern, because previously, during the reign of IS, between 2014 and 2017, there was an infiltration of these cells," Safaa al-Asam reported.

Terrorist groups in Syria and Iraq intensified their activities in early 2024, these formations were able to reorganize and retain the ability to carry out terrorist attacks and guerrilla operations, Seif Raad, a military expert and retired Iraqi Armed Forces officer, told Izvestia.

Military situation in Syria

Meanwhile, in Syria, after the capture of Aleppo, terrorist formations advanced toward Hama province, having previously captured the town of Maaret al-Nu'man. Earlier, an informed Syrian source told Izvestia that the terrorists' operation had been prepared for about a year.

In turn, the Syrian army command reported on December 1 that the terrorists' advance in Hama had been halted and the government troops had launched a counteroffensive. It seemed that the crisis of the SAR Armed Forces had been overcome, and the pace of the terrorists' advance had decreased.

However, from the morning of December 4, fierce clashes between the Syrian Army and militants began on the outskirts of Hama. On the night of December 5, the SAR Ministry of Defense denied reports of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham's infiltration into the city and said that government forces were in control of Hama.

According to official sources, the Syrian Armed Forces managed to push back the terrorist formations from the administrative center of the province by at least 20 km. In the past 24 hours alone, the Syrian troops, backed by the Russian Armed Forces, eliminated at least 300 terrorists in Hama, the Arab country's military said. However, on the afternoon of December 5, the Syrian military announced the redeployment to positions outside of Hama after fierce fighting with militants and their infiltration into residential neighborhoods.