TARTOUS: Syrian security forces have foiled an attempt to smuggle a shipment of weapons and ammunition from the coastal province of Tartous to Lebanon, the Interior Ministry said Saturday.
In a statement carried by SANA, the ministry said the operation by Internal Security Forces, in coordination with the General Intelligence Service, resulted in the seizure of automatic rifles, RPG rounds, weapons storage units and various types of ammunition that had been prepared for smuggling.
The latest seizure follows a similar operation in July, when specialized Interior Ministry units said they had intercepted a large weapons shipment being smuggled across the Syrian-Iraqi border before it entered Syrian territory, the report said.
At the time, the ministry said protecting Syria’s borders and safeguarding national sovereignty were among its top priorities, stressing that the country would not allow its territory to be used as a corridor or launchpad for weapons smuggling or activities threatening Syria or neighboring countries.
Hezbollah supply route
The crackdown marks a sharp departure from the role Syria played during the rule of former President Bashar Assad, when weapons and military equipment destined for Lebanon’s Hezbollah flowed through Syrian territory from Iran.
Israel repeatedly carried out airstrikes in Syria during the Assad era against what it said were Iranian or Hezbollah-linked weapons depots, military installations and supply routes. The strikes targeted suspected weapons storage and transfer facilities in various parts of the country as Israel sought to prevent Iran from establishing and expanding a military presence in Syria and transferring advanced weaponry to Hezbollah.
Syria’s new government has vowed to prevent its territory from being used as a base or transit route for weapons smuggling to Hezbollah or other armed groups in neighboring countries.
The government has also sought to strengthen control over Syria’s long and difficult-to-secure borders, including those with Lebanon and Iraq, amid concerns over arms trafficking and other illicit cross-border activity.
The Interior Ministry did not provide details on the intended recipient of the seized shipment or say whether any suspects had been arrested.
