The pro-Iranian militia leader Qais Khazali claimed in a speech on Eid al-Fitr at the end of Ramadan that Israel is involved in a conspiracy to divide parts of Syria. He made the speech on an important day in the Islamic calendar. Khazali is the leader of Asaib Ahl al-Haq, a powerful pro-Iranian militia in Iraq. He has long threatened Israel. In 2017 he went to Lebanon to view the Israeli border along with Hezbollah.
Iraqi militias have carried out drone attacks on Israel in the wake of the Hamas attack on Israel in October 2023.
It is in this context that Khazali has claimed there is a new conspiracy that he says is dividing Syria.
He argued that there is something called the ‘David Corridor’ that is a “project aimed at expanding Israeli control to the Euphrates River, involves ‘parts of the Iraqi borders and Iraqi lands,’” Rudaw media reported. Rudaw is a Kurdish media group based in Erbil in the autonomous Kurdistan region of Iraq. Khazali is also anti-Kurdish as are other Shi’ite pro-Iranian militias in Iraq. These groups often claim that Kurds are linked to Israel and the US and they view the Kurdistan Region as an adversary.
Khazali claims the goal of the ‘David Corridor’ is to “reach the Kurdish lands in Iraq and Syria, considering the ongoing cooperation [between Israel and the Kurds].” He claimed that “the Israeli incursion and occupation of Syrian territory… are primarily aimed at realizing their ambitions to occupy Syrian territory and achieve the greater goal of reaching the Euphrates River.”
The comments come at a time when Kurdish forces in Syria are expected to integrate into the new government of Ahmed al-Sharaa. Many Kurds in Syria live in areas run by the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces. The SDF include Kurdish forces under the YPG, or People’s Protection Units. These forces are linked to far-left Kurdish movements and Turkey has often opposed them, claiming they are part of the Kurdistan Workers Party or PKK. This creates a complex situation where the US is backing the SDF in Syria, but Turkey often attacks the SDF.
Now there is hope for change. The SDF leader Mazloum Abdi met Sharaa in Damascus in early March and agreed to integrate the SDF with the Syrian government forces over the next year. On March 31 Damascus announced the formation of a new transition government. Shara’a seized power in Damascus on December 8 when the Assad regime left. Some are concerned that Shara’a once led Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, a right-leaning Islamist rebel group. However, Shara’a has tried to show he is ready to run a new unified Syria. This will include giving Kurds rights. Kurds were often persecuted under the Assad regime.
The pro-Iranian militias in Iraq, such as Khazali, oppose the new government in Damascus. This is because Iran backed the Assad regime and used Syria to move weapons to Hezbollah. Many militias in Iraq played a role in Syria. Now they have lost Syria.
Israel and the Kurds
Israel has said in the past it support the Kurds. However the Kurdish region of Syria is far from Israel. Israel has also expressed support for the Druze in southern Syria, an area closer to Israel. The pro-Iran axis in the region sees any outreach by Israel to be part of a conspiracy. These groups also allege that the KRG, or Kurdistan Region of Iraq, is also linked to Israel. During the independence referendum of 2017 when Kurds in the KRG voted for independence, many Israeli flags were flown in Kurdish cities. This is because many Kurds see Israel as a friend or ally.
Khazali and his group Asaib Ahl al-Haq have been sanctioned by the US Treasury for their role in suppressing protests in Iraq in 2019. Khazali is viewed as a terrorist. He was also once held as a detainee at Camp Cropper in Iraq by the Americans. VOA noted that “he was extensively questioned by U.S. intelligence.” He was released in 2009 and went on to lead Asaib Ahl al-Haq. His group is part of the Popular Mobilization Forces in Iraq, a group of some thirty pro-Iranian militias. These groups have fought ISIS but they also threaten the US and others. Kataib Hezbollah, a part of the PMF, attacked a US base in Jordan in January 2024, killing three Americans.
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