Iranian forces have largely withdrawn from Syria following the toppling of President Bashar al-Assad in December, the Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday, citing US, European, and Arab officials.
Members of Iran’s Quds Force have now relocated to Iran and the militia groups have disbanded, the report said, citing a senior US official.
According to Western and Arab officials, most forces in eastern Syria—including IRGC officers and Afghan, Iraqi, Lebanese, and Syrian fighters—retreated to al-Qaim, a border town on the Iraqi side.
Some Iranian personnel based in Damascus flew to Tehran, while Hezbollah fighters in western Syria fled overland to Lebanon, they said.
As thousands of Iranian military personnel and their allies fled the country, they were forced to leave behind a significant amount of military equipment and weapons, much of which was later destroyed by Israeli airstrikes or captured by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and other groups, according to Western diplomats cited by the Wall Street Journal.
The report added that US officials believe Iran will ultimately attempt to re-establish its forces across the region, though this may prove untenable in the short term.
According to a senior US official cited in the report, it is unlikely that Syria's Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which toppled the Assad's government, will permit the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to renew its military presence in Syria imminently due to Iran's longstanding support for Assad.
According to the Moshe Dayan Center for Middle Eastern and African Studies, Iran had as many as 10,000 IRGC forces in Syria at its peak during Syria's civil war, and another 5,000 army troops, plus thousands more Iranian-backed militia forces.
Their research showed that Iran held 55 military bases in Syria in addition to 515 military points.
The Saudi-owned Al Majalla news site reported similar numbers, citing that Syria had 830 foreign military sites under Assad, 70% of which belonged to Iran, 570.
Satellite internet usage in the country increased 20-fold in 2024 with over 30,000 unique users contributing to the surge, the head of the Internet and Infrastructure Committee at the E-Commerce Association Pouya Pirhosseinlou said.
"Over 30,000 unique users are utilizing satellite internet, suggesting that the total number of satellite internet users exceeds 100,000," he told news agency ILNA. "This indicates that we will likely witness further growth in the use of this technology in the country in the future."
The primary appeal of Starlink lies in its unrestricted free access and high speed, two features largely absent in Iran, which ranks near the bottom of the global Internet Freedom Index.
Starlink gained prominence in Iran following the 2022 Woman, Life, Freedom protests, which erupted after the death of a young woman, Mahsa Amini, in morality police custody for hijab.
The government responded to the demonstrations with internet blackouts and extensive filtering, prompting many Iranians to turn to satellite services like Starlink for unrestricted online access.
In December, Forbes estimated that 20,000 Iranians were using Starlink despite its official prohibition.
Now, with over 100,000 users, the service has become a critical tool for bypassing censorship and government-imposed disruptions.
The US government’s decision to lift certain export restrictions on internet services to Iran in 2022 enabled billionaire Elon Musk-owned SpaceX to provide Starlink access in the region.
Starlink is prohibited in Iran. Government censors have blocked access to apps such as Telegram, Instagram and X as well, and authorities frequently arrest individuals for online statements deemed anti-Islamic or critical of the Islamic Republic.
Pirhosseinlou acknowledged the benefits of satellite internet but warned of its economic impact: “Using Starlink is the most expensive method of internet access, which disrupts the communications economy, drains hundreds of millions of dollars in foreign currency from the country and diminishes hope for domestic improvements to internet services.”
Despite the high costs, the growing adoption of Starlink reflects dissatisfaction with local alternatives, including Iran’s government-controlled fiber-optic internet.
Meanwhile, Iran's government has lobbied the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) to exclude the country from satellite internet coverage. Efforts to curb Starlink's influence highlight its role as a contentious element in Iran's ongoing struggle between state control and digital freedom.
The rights organization Freedom House ranked Iran as having the world’s third most restrictive internet environment, criticizing the Islamic Republic for criminalizing online dissent in an effort to increase voter turnout and legitimize presidential polls.
"(Authorities) criminalized any content that encouraged election boycotts or protests, or that criticized candidates ... (for) higher voter turnout to make the election seem legitimate, despite the arbitrary disqualification of most candidates," the group said in a report in October.
The expanding reach of Starlink represents a shift in Iran's internet landscape, offering a lifeline for those seeking unrestricted online access amidst heightened governmental control and censorship.
Imran Chowdhury, 25, from Chingford, a suburban area in northeast London near Epping Forest, is accused of assisting Daniel Khalife after his escape from Wandsworth prison in September 2023, which triggered a nationwide search before Khalife was recaptured three days later.
“Chowdhury was arrested in January 2024 and charged in December with one count of assisting an escaped prisoner,” police said.
Khalife had escaped the prison by clinging onto the bottom of a food delivery van. Police did not specify how Chowdhury allegedly assisted Khalife in his prison escape.
The accused is set to appear at Westminster Magistrates' Court on January 7.
Police also confirmed that no further action will be taken against an unnamed woman arrested in February 2024 in connection with the case.
In November last year, Khalife was found guilty of espionage for Iran, including collecting sensitive information for individuals linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and gathering the names of special forces personnel.
He was convicted on two counts related to espionage in violation of Britain’s Official Secrets Act and Terrorism Act but acquitted of charges related to a bomb hoax.
During his trial, the court heard that Khalife initiated contact with Iranian intelligence officers after learning he could not obtain developed vetting, a high-level UK security clearance, because his mother was born in Iran.
Khalife said that he later approached MI5, offering to become a double agent. He said he believed this move would be welcome, but described his arrest as a shocking experience, likening it to a "punch in the face."
He also said that drew inspiration from the television series Homeland, which portrays complex espionage scenarios involving undercover agents and double agents.
"I had seen one of the characters in the programme had actually falsely defected to a particular country and utilised that position to further the national security interests of that character's country," he told the court last year.
Prosecutors dismissed Khalife’s claim that he aspired to work as a double agent for British security services, describing it as “a cynical game.” They argued that Khalife collected “a very large body of restricted and classified material.”
Khalife, who grew up in Kingston, south-west London, joined the British Army in September 2018.
The prosecution said that Khalife took a photograph of a handwritten list of 15 soldiers, including some serving in the Special Air Service (SAS) and Special Boat Service (SBS). In June 2021, he extracted details from an internal promotions spreadsheet shared in a WhatsApp group called “Brew Room Boys.” He then accessed an internal HR system to retrieve the first names of the soldiers, the court was told.
"He was clearly researching and gathering and recording that information," Mark Heywood KC for the prosecution said during a trial session in October last year.
Prosecutors said Khalife began contact with Iranian intelligence in 2019, creating a contact with Iran’s +98 dialing code. By August 2020, he was messaging a contact saved as “David Smith,” discussing internal military systems and saying he would remain in the military for "25+ years" unless instructed otherwise.
According to the prosecution, Khalife traveled to Istanbul in August 2020 intending to meet Iranian operatives but stayed at a hotel after the plans fell through. They also alleged that in early 2021, while stationed at Fort Hood in Texas, Khalife remained in contact with an Iranian handler.
Khalife was first arrested on 6 January 2022 at a barracks in Stafford where police officers executed a search warrant. He will be sentenced later this year.
