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العربية
In a move that sparked widespread controversy, the Syrian government granted a license to Farhan Al-Marsoumi to establish a company for the import, export, and distribution of tobacco, molasses (maassel), and cigarettes, in addition to the equipment necessary for their production.
The decision was issued through an announcement published in the official gazette by the Ministry of Internal Trade and Consumer Protection.
The license is registered under the names of Farhan Hamad Mohammad Al-Marsoumi and Rana Abdul Razzaq Al-Mosulli, with a capital of 100 million Syrian pounds. It permits them to sell these products both wholesale and retail, and to participate in tenders with both the public and private sectors.
Farhan Mohammad Hamad Al-Marsoumi is considered one of the most prominent arms of Iranian influence in eastern Syria. He is regarded as a local front for the interests of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in Deir Ezzor province. He hails from a village in the eastern countryside and has emerged in recent years as a security and social figure within a regional network managing Iran’s entrenchment in the desert and along the Euphrates River banks.
Al-Marsoumi became known for his close ties with the Iranian “47th Regiment,” where he played a central role in recruiting local youths into this formation, using a combination of intimidation and incentives, while promoting foreign sectarian ideologies. He is known for his unwavering loyalty to the Iranian project, and is now seen as a key liaison between Tehran and Damascus in eastern Syria.
He has managed to build a complex network linking the Fourth Division, led by Maher al-Assad, with Iranian entities, enabling him to run large-scale smuggling operations involving weapons and narcotics.
It is also worth noting that Al-Marsoumi previously engaged in real estate purchases on behalf of militia leaders, in coordination with figures such as Madloul Al-Aziz and Firas Al-Jahham, the former leader of the “National Defense Forces” militia.
