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العربية
Well-informed sources told the Deir Ezzor 24 Network that the Russian 1st Division’ 5th Corps raised the alert in the villages and towns of Hattla, Khasham, al-Salihiyah, al-Hasiyah, Marat, Mazloum, and al-Tabiyah controlled by the Assad militias east of the Euphrates.
The sources emphasized that raising the alert included suspending fighters and officers’ leaves and doubling the fighters’ individual ammunition; however, no heavy military equipment entered the area.
The 5th Corps is Russia’s military field arm, as it is directly affiliated to the Hmeimim base and operates upon Russian orders separately from the Assad regime’s Ministry of Defense. The corps remarkably adopts the style of the Iraqi Mobilization Forces.
Through the formation of the 5th Corps as a loyal force in support of Assad, and not linked to Iran, Russia sought to send messages of reassurance to various countries that oppose the Iranian expansion in Syria, most notably Israel, Saudi Arabia and even the American administration, as Russia made commitments to these countries to limit the Iranian presence in exchange for political and field gains.
