Iran coerced Afghans to fight extremists in Syria: HRW

PanARMENIAN.Net - Iran's Revolutionary Guards has recruited thousands of Afghans, some by coercion, to fight in Syria's war alongside forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad, Human Rights Watch said Friday, January 29, according to AFP.

"Iran has not just offered Afghan refugees and migrants incentives to fight in Syria, but several said they were threatened with deportation back to Afghanistan unless they did," said Peter Bouckaert, emergencies director at the New York-based HRW.

"Faced with this bleak choice, some of these Afghan men and boys fled Iran for Europe."

Tehran says its Fatemiyoun Brigade, comprised of Afghan recruits, are volunteers to defend sacred Shiite sites in Syria and Iraq against Sunni extremists like those of the Islamic State group.

The brigade, which is backed by the powerful Revolutionary Guards, is named after the daughter of the Prophet Mohammed whose mausoleum near Damascus is venerated by Shiites.

But some reports say the Afghans have been offered residency and a monthly salary to fight for Iran.

The Islamic republic denies having any boots on the ground and insists its commanders and generals act as "military advisers" in Syria and Iraq.