Israeli special forces carried out a daring raid on an Iranian missile facility in central Syria, Israeli media outlets reported Thursday, citing Middle East security expert Eva J. Koulouriotis.
“Israeli ground forces targeted an Iranian missile production facility in Syria during a strike this week attributed to Israel, according to Middle East expert Eva J. Koulouriotis, who specializes in jihadist groups and cited a security source,” the Jerusalem Post reported Thursday.
The Iranian-run missile and chemical weapons production site, operated by the regime’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), was located in the Syrian province of Hama — a few hundred miles from the Israeli border.
The alleged IDF raid, which apparently took place on Sunday night, hit a “research center in Masyaf, which has long been associated with the manufacture of chemical weapons and precision missiles by the Syrian regime and Iranian forces,” The Times of Israel reported quoting Syrian sources.
Earlier this week, a Western news outlet reported ‘several waves’ of alleged Israeli airstrikes in central Syria. They did not mention any ground operations by the Israeli troops during the aerial strikes.
The Israeli government appears to have confirmed the raid, news reports suggest.
“Two sources said Israel briefed the Biden administration in advance of the sensitive operation and the U.S. didn’t oppose it. The White House didn’t respond to a request for comment,” Axios reports.
The Israeli news website YNET reported the details:
Syria TV, a Syrian opposition media outlet based in Turkey, reported on Wednesday that Israeli ground forces were deployed using ropes as part of the Israeli strike in the Hama region on Sunday, although Israeli aircraft didn’t land in the area. The report claimed that Israeli drones carried out strikes to prevent entry to the area where the forces landed.The unprecedented Israeli operation in Syria reportedly included several steps: starting with intense airstrikes in the area after which Israeli forces infiltrated an Iranian military complex after lowering from helicopters to the ground and ending with troops seizing documents and arresting Iranians inside of the facility for questioning.According to the report, clashes at the site led to the deaths of three Syrians and injured others. Two to four Iranians were reportedly captured by Israeli forces. Sources indicated the Syrian regime blocked rescue teams from reaching the area following the attack.The bodies of military casualties were taken to an undisclosed location and their fate is unknown, while wounded civilians were evacuated to Masyaf National Hospital. Sources also suggested the Syrian regime or elements within it may have facilitated the strike and troop deployment.The report also noted that a committee of inquiry was established following the attack. In recent weeks, Syrian radars and air defense systems have been subjected to Israeli strikes, leading to the regime’s inability to monitor its airspace.According to Greek researcher Eva Koulouriotis, the forces raided a security complex belonging to the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) in an operation that lasted about an hour, during which they entered the facility, seized equipment and documents, rigged the building with explosives and destroyed it with additional airstrikes.Israel’s Institute for National Security Studies head, Major General (res.) Tamir Hayman who previously served as the head of the IDF Intelligence Directorate, hinted the operation was “a complex commando raid that presents abilities to destroy a distant underground facility.”On the night between Sunday and Monday, Syria reported an unusual wave of Israeli airstrikes. According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Syrian opposition group based in London, 18 people were killed and dozens were injured in the strikes. Among the dead were four civilians, six unidentified individuals and the rest were military personnel and local militia operatives.
The elaborate Israeli raid was reportedly aimed at Iranian missile supply going to the terrorist group Hezbollah. “In parallel, fighter jets attacks roads leading to the facility to prevent [Syrian] regime forces from reaching it. The facility is believed by experts to develop ballistic missiles and supply equipment to Hezbollah,” the Israeli TV channel i24NEWS noted.
Iran is ramping up its military support for Hezbollah as the Lebanon-based terrorist group unleashes a deadly wave cross-border rocket attacks on Israel. In recent months, the IDF has carried out several air and drone strikes on Hezbollah-linked terrorist targets in Syria and Lebanon.
If confirmed, Sunday’s strike would be a rare instance in which the Israeli airborne forces carried out a raid deep inside a hostile territory. “The source said that the operation lasted about an hour, during which troops on the ground were able to collect documents and destroy the facility from the inside,” the i24NEWS added.
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