Brigadier General Shahrokh Daipour was killed on Friday in the town of Albu Kamal, according to Fars news agency.
Daipour, who is originally from Kermanshah, was in Syria to train regime forces. He was a former unit commander during the Iran-Iraq war (1980-1988).
Since the Syrian civil war began in 2011, Iran has played a key role in supporting the regime of Bashar al-Assad, deploying thousands of its own personnel. Iran says its troops are only there as military advisers.
In April, Israeli jets targeted Syrian government military bases, reportedly killing Iranian forces.
On February 7, 2017, Seyed Mohammad Ali Shahidi Mahallati, Iran’s Director of Foundation of Martyrs and Veterans Affairs (DFMVA), said the families of more than 1,000 Iranian military forces killed in Syria are under the support of the DFMVA.
In March, during another event in Tehran, Mahallati said the DFMVA is taking care of 2,100 families of military personals killed in Syria and Iraq.
At the end of 2017, widespread protests swept Iran as people protested the nation’s involvement in Syria and demanded better living conditions.
Israeli officials have repeatedly asked Iranian military forces to withdraw from Syria. In May, Russia, another key Assad ally, said all foreign forces must leave Syria.
On May 21, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo issued a list of 12 demands of Iran, including the withdrawal Iranian forces from Syria.
As Iran is expected to face more economic hardship with the return of US sanctions, it will be more costly for Iran to have a large military presence in Syria.
