10 Iran troops killed in Syria clashes: Media reports

By Mustafa Melih Ahishali

TEHRAN (AA) - Ten Iranian soldiers, including at least two senior Revolutionary Guard Corps (RGC) commanders, have been killed in clashes with Syrian opposition forces in Syria’s northern Aleppo province, the Iranian media reported Wednesday.

According to Iran’s semi-official Fars News Agency, casualties included two RGC commanders -- Ahmed Gholami and Mustafa Rchidbor -- who were both killed during recent clashes in Aleppo.

News agencies, however, did not provide the exact times of the soldiers’ deaths.

According to Iran’s Rahiyan Noor news website, six of the slain soldiers will be buried Thursday in the Iranian city of Qom.

Iran’s Mashriq news website, for its part, reported that two of the slain soldiers who had been fighting with the RGC-affiliated "Fatimid Brigade" -- comprised of Afghan Shia fighters -- would be buried in the Iranian city of Mashhad.

Some 1,300 Iranian soldiers are estimated to have been killed in Syria since the conflict in that country began in early 2011.