Syria seizes advanced weapons allegedly going to Lebanon’s Hezbollah | Material Issues

Syrian officials say they intercepted missiles, rockets, and drones before they entered Iraq.

Syria has seized weapons shipments, including missiles, on its border with Iraq, while officials say they have foiled an attempt to smuggle weapons to Hezbollah in Lebanon, which the group denies.

Syria’s Ports and Customs authorities said on Thursday that the weapons shipment – which included long-range missiles, rockets and drones – was hidden inside “one of the oil tankers heading to the city of Baniyas”.

It was found during a border inspection at the al-Tanf border between Syria and Iraq after customs officers conducted a thorough search of the vehicle, Syrian state media reported.

“According to the ministry, preliminary investigations based on evidence gathered at the site showed that the goods had to pass through Syrian territory before being handed over to Hezbollah terrorists in Lebanon,” SANA wrote, citing sources from the Syrian Interior Ministry.

The Iranian-backed Lebanese group has denied any involvement in Syria, dismissing what it said on Thursday as “false news without evidence, aimed at harming Hezbollah”.

The Syrian authorities are known as hate the groupbecause he was a friend of the former president Bashar al-Assad before being removed in 2024 by members of the current government.

Following the takeover, Iraq said it would form a commission to investigate what happened. The military’s Joint Operations Command said Baghdad would coordinate with Syrian authorities to determine the nature of the smuggling attempt, hold those responsible accountable, and strengthen security along the shared border.

The Baniyas route, where the oil tanker passes, has been used frequently in recent months to transport oil between Iraq and Syria, starting with the main route through Iraq. Hormuz River has been disrupted by the Iran war.

“This takeover from Syria is part of the regional transformation that has taken place over the past few years, particularly the fall of the Assad regime in Syria,” Al Jazeera’s Heidi Pett said in Lebanon.

“It was a very popular road route to Iran for weapons and money to our partner here in Lebanon, Hezbollah. They came from Iran, through Iraq, through Syria, and then into Lebanon.”

“Under the Assad regime they (Iran) had a bit of a problem with that, but since the new (Syrian) president Ahmed al-Sharaa took over, he’s been fighting the smuggling route,” Pett said.

An expert at the Syrian Ministry of Interior told SANA that “protecting Syria’s borders and protecting the sovereignty of its country is the most important thing, adding that it will not allow the territory of Syria to be used as a passage or starting point for smuggling weapons or other activities that threaten the security of Syria or neighboring countries”.

US President Donald Trump spoke to Syria’s al-Sharaa about disarming Hezbollahwhich is fighting the Israeli army south of Lebanon. But the office of Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said al-Sharaa had taken action he assured her that Syria will not take part in the internal affairs of Lebanon, including the fight against Hezbollah.