Israeli army arrests Iranian 'terror cell' in southern Syria, report

Ya Libnan

16 hours ago

DF troops operate in southern Syria in a photo released on July 2, 2025. (Israel Defense Forces)
sraeli troops arrested several members of a terror cell deployed by Iran in southern Syria in an overnight raid, the military says.
The cell was operating in two locations near the border with Israel and was targeted based on intelligence gathered over recent weeks, according to the Israel Defense Forces.
During the raid, troops from the 474th Golan Regional Brigade, who carried out the raid together with field investigators from Military Intelligence's Unit 504, also seized weapons, including firearms and grenades.
The IDF says it will continue efforts to thwart the entrenchment of Iranian-linked terror groups in Syria, particularly near the Israeli border.
Israeli troops have been stationed in Syria since the fall of the former Assad regime in December, where they are holding a small buffer zone near the border.
Israel annexed the Golan Heights in 1981 after capturing the territory from Syria during the 1967 Six-Day War. While most of the international community regards it as occupied Syrian land, US President Donald Trump recognised Israeli sovereignty over it during his first term in office , a move that was described as illegal by the International community.
Following the fall of longtime Syrian ruler Bashar al-Assad in December, Israel moved further and invaded the UN buffer zone between the Golan Heights and southern Syria, and carried out an aerial campaign targeting the country's military capabilities.
Israeli officials also
approved the expansion
of illegal settlements there. There are about 31,000 Israeli settlers spread across dozens of illegal Israeli settlements in the Golan Heights.
Iran had supported al-Assad since Syria's war erupted in 2011, providing him with fighters, weapons and military advice in the form of an IRGC presence that aimed to keep him in power.His fall was a huge setback for Iran and its proxy Hezbollah in Lebanon, since the majority of Hezbollah arms were shipped via Syria to Lebanon
Times of Israel/ Al Jazeera