Iranian army officer killed in Syria's Aleppo

Iranian artillery officer Mehdi Joudi

ews agencies, July 13 2017 - Iranian artillery officer Mehdi Joudi was killed in Syria on Tuesday, according to Trend news agency.

Joudi was killed in Aleppo city while conducting military advisory mission, the reports said.

Iran earlier in March announced that the death toll of Iranian-backed forces in Syria had surpassed 2,100. Commentators say these forces are mainly tasked with protecting Assad and suppressing the Sunnis.

Following the outbreak of the Syrian crisis, Iran reportedly set up pro-Shiite militias to support Bashar al-Assad's government against armed opposition groups.

In addition, in 2016, Tehran dispatched a group of its military personnel, known as 'Green Beret Forces', on advisory mission to Syria to bolstered its military presence in the country.

Iran's support for Assad has come at a dear price as many of Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) recruits and Afghan militiamen have been killed over the past weeks in many conflict zones in Syria.