The Israeli Defense Forces announced a commando operation that destroyed an underground Iranian missile factory in Syria. Four heavy vehicles and two attack helicopters, 21 fighter jets, five drones and 14 spy planes took part in the attack.
The Israeli Defense Forces said on Thursday that in September 2024, Israeli commandos penetrated 200 kilometers into Syrian territory and destroyed an underground Iranian missile factory. According to the Times of Israel, the video released by the army is “one of the most daring operations of the special forces”.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu congratulated the commanders and said the action proved the soldiers’ “determination and courage” and the military’s ability to operate anywhere, Reuters reported.
At the time of the operation, which was carried out by 120 commanders, the regime of Bashar al-Assad was still in power in Syria, and Israel had not yet taken action in Lebanon against the terrorist organization Hezbollah.
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According to the Israeli military, the plant, located under a mountain slope near the town of Masyaf, was Iran’s “flagship project” that supplied weapons to Hezbollah.
At the end of 2017, Iran started the tunneling of this plant. In 2021, the construction was completed and the equipment of the enterprise began. At the time of the attack, the facility was on the verge of full production—rocket engines were already being mass-produced and test rockets were being produced.
Helicopters, fighter jets and drones took part in the operation
According to the Israel Defense Forces, after the full operation of this underground plant, it will be able to produce 100 to 300 missiles a year, including missiles up to 300 km, precision-guided missiles with a distance of up to 130 km and short-range missiles. missiles up to 40-70 kilometers – said the representative of the army, lieutenant colonel Nadav Shozani. The plant was located so deep that it was impossible to destroy it with an air attack, the newspaper “Times of Israel” writes.
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Four heavy vehicles and two attack helicopters, 21 fighters, five drones and 14 spy planes took part in the operation in September. At the Israeli military airport, 30 aircraft were on standby in case of unexpected intervention.
The helicopters flew over the Mediterranean Sea and landed off the coast of Lebanon before returning to Syrian airspace. They flew very low to avoid Syrian radars and air defense systems.
Israeli forces on the Syrian border ATEF SAFADI/PAP/EPA
The underground factory was blown up
At that time, the Masyaf region had very good air defense, only the Syrian capital, Damascus, was better. Moreover, Russian forces with their air defense systems were also located on the coast.
According to “Times of Israel”, the helicopters flew from the coast to their target for 18 minutes, during which time they were not detected. At the same time, warplanes and drones fired around the underground plant and other targets in Syria. The aim of these strikes was both to attract attention from the approaching helicopters and to confuse the Syrian military.
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After landing, a fight broke out between the Israeli commandos and the Syrian guards of the underground factory. It included about 50 teams. They attached explosives to all the main elements, the total weight of which reached 300 kilograms.
The charges were lifted when the commanders returned to the helicopters. The underground explosion was not only visible, but also felt like a small earthquake.
The Israeli army said that an hour later, hundreds of Syrian soldiers arrived at the factory. After this operation, the Syrian media reported that 14 were killed and 43 were wounded. None of the participants were killed or injured by Israel. According to the army, these underground facilities are no longer in use, and after the fall of the Assad regime in Syria, Iran has largely withdrawn from Syria, the Times of Israel website said.
Main image source: IDF
