Bombing In Syria’s Daraa Kills Prominent Pro-Government Commander, Thr…
On August 9, a prominent pro-government commander involved in counter terrorism and drug operations was assassinated in the southern Syrian governorate of Daraa.
The commander, Mustafa al-Masalma, was killed along with one of his bodyguards, a warrant officer from the Military Intelligence Directorate (MID) and a reporter from Sama TV, Firas al-Ahmad, when a heavy improvised explosive device blew up their vehicle in an area called al-Chyah in the southern outskirts of Daraa city.
The official Syrian Arab News Agency said that the group was targeted while on its way back from the border with Jordan, where al-Ahmad was covering an ongoing operation against drug traffickers. Al-Masalma was one of the commanders of the operation.
Al-Masalma, also known as al-Kasm, was one of the top rebel commanders in Daraa before joining the 2018 reconciliation agreement.
In later years, the commander led a pro-government armed group backed by the MID. His group was mainly involved in operations against ISIS and other terrorist groups. This year, the group began to take part in counter drug operations in the governorate.
Al-Masalma and his group were widely seen as the government’s main strike force in Daraa. The commander reportedly survived as many as nine assassination attempts in the last five years.
No group has claimed responsibility for the assassination of al-Masalma, so far. While ISIS is the main suspect, it is also possible that the bombing was orchestrated by drug traffickers in response to the ongoing operation on the border with Jordan.
The counter drug operation was launched by the Syrian military and security forces last week in coordination with the Jordanian side.
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