IDF strikes Iran-linked operatives, assets in eastern Syria; more than 15 said killed

The Israeli Air Force carried out airstrikes in the predawn hours of Tuesday morning in eastern Syria, targeting Iranian assets and operatives involved in a recent plot to smuggle advanced arms to West Bank terrorists, The Times of Israel has learned.

More than 15 people were reportedly killed in the strikes in the Deir Ezzor and al-Bukamal areas, close to Syria’s border with Iraq.

The strikes targeted assets belonging to Iran’s Unit 4000, the Special Operations Division of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps’ Intelligence Organization, and the special operations unit of the IRGC’s Quds Force in Syria, known as Unit 18840, according to Israeli defense sources.

On Monday, the Shin Bet announced that it had foiled attempts by the two Iranian units to smuggle advanced weapons to West Bank Palestinian terrorists.

The strikes overnight were a response to the smuggling attempts and targeted assets related to the Iranian plot, the defense sources said. READ MORE