IDF warns Iran against smuggling weapons to Hezbollah as regime sends proxy troops into Syria

After jihadist rebel groups captured the city of Aleppo in northern Syria over the weekend, IDF Spokesman Brig.-Gen. Daniel Hagari issued the military’s first official statement regarding the situation in Israel’s northeastern neighbor.

“The Iranian regime is sending reinforcements to Syria,” Hagari confirmed while speaking to Sky News Arabia. On Monday morning, Reuters reported that Iran-backed militias entered Syria from Iraq overnight to assist Syrian army forces in beating back the jihadist rebel groups that captured Aleppo.

A senior Syrian army source said dozens of Iraqi Popular Mobilization Force fighters crossed into Syria near the al-Bukamal crossing on the Euphrates River.

“Syria belongs to the Syrians. We will make sure that Iran does not smuggle weapons to Lebanon and Hezbollah, and we will work to prevent smuggling through Syria,” Hagari said.

“We are committed to the ceasefire agreement - the Lebanese government and UNIFIL forces must do their job.” Hours later, Hezbollah violated the ceasefire by firing grenades into Israel, prompting Prime Minister Netanyahu to vow a “strong response” against the terror group.

Israeli intelligence reportedly estimates that the chaos in Syria will help stabilize the ceasefire, as Hezbollah and its patron Iran will be busy trying to help their ally stay in power. However, there were also concerns that Iran would order thousands of proxy troops to enter Syria, ultimately boosting its presence on Israel’s border.

On Monday, Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman, Esmaeil Baghaei, said the regime “entered Syria many years ago at the official invitation of the Syrian government when the Syrian people faced the threat of terrorism.”

“Our military advisers were present in Syria, and they are still present” and will remain “in accordance with the wishes” of its government, Baghaei said at a press conference.

The Iranian regime officially refers to its troops, most of whom are part of its Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and its Quds Force, as “military advisors.”

Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi visited Syria on Sunday in a show of support for the Assad regime.

Araghchi wrote on 𝕏 that it was “an important meeting” after which he paid “an enjoyable visit” to a Shia religious shrine in Damascus.

Photos of a meeting between #Iran's regime's foreign minister Abbas Araghchi and #Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus today. pic.twitter.com/pgtMPGFSqR

— Jason Brodsky (@JasonMBrodsky) December 1, 2024

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian told Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on Monday, “We believe that Syria will once again overcome Zionist plots against its security and stability, and we stand by the Syrian government and people in this path.”

The recent rebel offensive that rattled the Syrian regime came shortly after discussions between the United States and the United Arab Emirates about potentially isolating Iran. According to five sources cited by Reuters, the talks explored lifting sanctions on Syria if Assad demonstrated a willingness to sever his strong ties with Iran and Hezbollah.

The rebel offensive confirmed existing doubts over the regime’s stability, which the U.S-Emirati diplomatic move aimed to exploit to peel Syria away from Iran’s “Axis of Resistance,” a network that has increasingly encircled Israel over the past decade.

“I think this is fanciful,” commented Jason Brodsky, policy director for the United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) think tank.

“Assad is dependent on Iran's regime, especially in the current dynamic. So much so that there are unconfirmed reports that IRGC commander Javad Ghaffari, who was forced to leave Syria after a fall out with Assad, is now reentering the country. I feel like this idea keeps coming up but never works,” Brodsky wrote on 𝕏.