Lebanon's Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah on Friday denied reports about sending fighters and experts to fight alongside Russia in Ukraine, Lebanese news outlet Al Mayadeen TV reported.
Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram
"No one from Hezbollah, neither a fighter nor an expert, went to this arena or any of the arenas of these wars," the terrorist leader was quoted as saying.
Last week, Russian President Vladimir Putin gave the green light for up to 16,000 volunteers from the Middle East, particularly Syria, to be deployed alongside Russian-backed rebels to fight in Ukraine.
Syria clearly has a rich pool of fighters to draw from. Russia's military is deeply entrenched in the Mideast country, alongside Hezbollah, where its intervention – starting in 2015 – helped Syrian President Bashar Assad gain the upper hand in the ongoing, 11-year civil war.
But less clear is how significant, large or effective a Syrian deployment would be.
On Friday, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu spoke of "more than 16,000 applications" already from the Middle East, though he didn't specify which country. Syrian opposition activists say Russia recently began recruitment efforts in Syria for the Ukraine war, but put the scale of those efforts so far at far lower numbers.
The announcement came after the Ukrainian government said some 20,000 foreigners from various nations have already joined the so-called International Legion for the Territorial Defense of Ukraine, most of them from Western countries.
Who are these potential pro-Russia volunteers?
The ranks of pro-government paramilitary groups in Syria include tens of thousands of so-called National Defense Forces, Christian militia fighters and army defectors skilled in urban and guerilla warfare. They also include other Russian-supported auxiliary units and militias that fought alongside the Syrian military.
"If need be, Russia could quickly recruit members of these groups to fight in Ukraine," according to Danny Makki, a Syria analyst.
Joined by Iran-backed fighters from nearby Iraq, Lebanon and elsewhere in the region, these forces not only battled Syrian rebels, they also helped fight the Islamic State group after it overran large parts of Iraq and Syria in 2014.
Thousands of mercenaries from the Russian private contractor Wagner Group have also deployed in Syria.
"Given the misery of the Syrian economy, there would be no shortage of combat-hardened men of military age willing to put their lives on the line for a modicum of material gain," Makki wrote in an analysis for the Middle East Institute, where he is a non-resident scholar.
It wouldn't be the first time Syrian fighters are recruited for conflicts abroad. Turkey, another major actor in Syria, recruited Syrian mercenaries to boost its fighters in other wars. These include conflicts in Azerbaijan and Libya, where the presence of thousands of foreign fighters, including those from Syria, Sudan and Turkey, remains a major obstacle to peace.
Some Syrian observers and activists suggest any recruitment going on is so far largely symbolic and remains in the very early stages.
Subscribe to Israel Hayom's daily newsletter and never miss our top stories!
A recent ad for a "combat role" in Ukraine was posted on a closed Facebook group for soldiers of the Fourth Armored Division, one of the largest in the Syrian army. It offered a payment of $3,000 depending on an applicant's expertise and said registration was limited.
Russia's Defense Ministry-run TV channel aired footage purportedly from Syria showing armed men in uniform it described as would-be volunteers. The men waved Russian and Syrian flags and held up a sign bearing the letter "Z" – used on Russian armored vehicles in Ukraine and now a symbol of support for Russian troops.
Ahmad al-Ahmad, an opposition activist in northwestern Syria, said that in the government-controlled northern town of Ethraya, the Russians have asked senior officers with the Fifth Corps, a Russian-backed Syrian army force, to recruit young men with experience in urban fighting who are ready to go to Ukraine.
As many as 3,000 people have registered in southern Syria, he said, although those figures were unconfirmed.
