Iran has significantly increased its involvement in Syria over the past few days, Ynet learned Monday.
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The presence of Iran's Revolutionary Guards and Hezbullies operatives assisting Syrian
Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneckal-Assad
Light of the Alawites...
's in his brutal crackdown of protesters now number in the high hundreds; while the Arab League
...an organization of Arabic-speaking states with 22 member countries and four observers. The League tries to achieve Arab consensus on issues, which usually leaves them doing nothing but a bit of grimacing and mustache cursing...
said that it will not supply the rebels with arms unless the bloodshed comes to a halt.
The majority of Iranian and Hezbullies operatives in Syria supply Assad's army with intelligence and train the Damascus
...Capital of the last overtly fascist regime in the world...
forces on weapons' maintenance and reconnaissance. A smaller group of operatives is involved in the actual fighting. Â
Tehran has also increased the financial assistance it lends Damascus. It also maintains regular flights to the Syrian capital -- a practice Arab League members have suspended due to the escalating violence.
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Iran's financial aid is one of Assad's lifelines, as it keeps the middle class in Damascus and Halab (Aleppo
...For centuries, Aleppo was Greater Syria's largest city and the Ottoman Empire's third, after Constantinople and Cairo. Although relatively close to Damascus in distance, Aleppans regard Damascenes as country cousins...
) from rising against him as well.
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The Islamic Theocratic
Republic's decision to bolster ties with Syria at a time when Tehran has to deal with growing international sanctions, imposed on it over its refusal to suspend its nuclear program, indicates that the ayatollah's regime believes Assad and his government can survive the uprising.