Secret infiltration and an earth-shaking blast: How 120 IDF commandos raided Iran’s secret missile factory in Syria

Unconfirmed reports in September first drew the world’s attention to the possibility that the Israeli army had conducted an incredibly dangerous and complex operation approximately 200 km (125 miles) north of the nation's borders, deep within Syrian territory.

After confirming earlier this week that Israeli forces were responsible for the raid, the IDF has now released a slew of detailed information explaining how its troops were able to infiltrate the secret factory hidden under a mountain.

The newly released information also clarified earlier reports, revealing that the operation was codenamed "Many Roads," not "Deep Layer," which was the name of the destroyed facility.

The daring operation was conducted at a highly sensitive point in the war – before the fall of the Assad regime, and just before the IDF began decapitating and decimating Hezbollah forces in Lebanon.

The site belonged to CERS, a research and production institute tasked with developing advanced weaponry, which, in recent years, had been increasingly taken over by Iran’s IRGC and Hezbollah, and used for their purposes.

The Iranian regime intended to shift its focus from carrying out weapons transfers using overland truck convoys through Syria and Iraq – which Israel has struck numerous times – towards producing weapons in secure facilities near the Lebanese border in Syria, and transferring weapons to Hezbollah from there.

This is why the site near the town of Masyaf, close to the Lebanese border, was selected, with construction beginning in 2017. The decision to build a production line deep beneath a mountain was intended to prevent Israeli interference, while the short distance to Lebanon was expected to further limit opportunities to target the shipments.

Israel estimates that once operational, the factory would be capable of producing up to 300 missiles per year, including heavy ballistic and precision-guided missiles. Despite four Israeli attempts over the years to disrupt the construction with airstrikes, the factory produced its first prototypes in August, just one month before the "Many Roads" operation.

Israel assessed that once construction was completed and production began, security at the site would be significantly heightened. Consequently, Israeli intelligence recognized a window of opportunity for the IDF to destroy the nearly-operational factory, along with its critical and expensive infrastructure already inside, while it remained only lightly guarded.

“If we had waited a little longer with the execution – it might have already been too late, or the whole operation would have looked completely different,” an IDF source told Army Radio.

After training for around two months, 120 elite fighters of the Israeli Air Force (IAF) Shaldag commando and the 669th Brigade search and rescue units, boarded four CH-53 “Yasour” helicopters and headed for the coast. They were accompanied by a force of around 70 aircraft, including helicopter gunships, fighter jets, and drones, as well as transport, intelligence and refueling planes.

After flying for 90 minutes over the Mediterranean Sea, the helicopters infiltrated the Syrian coast, flying only about 18 meters (60 feet) above the waves to evade the heavy concentration of radar systems in the area. “The helicopters skimmed the surface of the sea,” a senior IAF official told Army Radio.

After 18 minutes, the force arrived near Masyaf, “a hermetically protected area,” according to an IDF intelligence officer involved in the planning. “The Syrians defined it as the second most important defense area after Damascus. Since we were flying low, not only surface-to-air missiles were a threat, but also anti-tank missiles that could be launched at us from the ground,” he explained.

The helicopters landed near the site, amid a heavy wave of airstrikes meant to convince the Syrians and Iranians that this was “just another” wave of Israeli strikes in the area.

“We saw the explosions from the air when we were above the mountains on the way to land,” recounted one of the commanders who participated in the operation. The strikes also cut off access routes to prevent reinforcements from attacking the Israeli forces.

From that moment, the clock was ticking. “We did everything on the run, we realized that we had to be quick because there is not much time,” said one of the commanders.

“Intelligence estimated that within two and a half hours, an entire Syrian division, hundreds of fighters, could arrive at the scene. Therefore, the time allocated for us to be on the ground was two and a half hours at the most.”

Israeli forces were divided into four squads: The first squad was tasked to secure the surroundings; the second to break into the factory; the third squad to sabotage it; and the fourth squad, consisting of 669 fighters stayed with the helicopters and prepared to rescue and treat potential casualties.

The first squad of some 50 fighters fanned out to isolate the area and quickly neutralize threats, enabling the second team to infiltrate the factory.

The factory was guarded by only around 30 Syrian soldiers, who were quickly eliminated. The first team then took up a post on a hill overlooking the area and launched a drone to observe and secure the space.

The second team had to break down the three large and locked factory entrances before the sabotage squad, weighed down by the heavy explosives and other equipment, arrived.

After almost 50 minutes, the second squad managed to open the administrative entrance before approaching the two industrial gates from the inside and breaking them down as well. For this task, they used forklifts that were already inside the factory.

Israeli intelligence had learned about the forklifts beforehand, prompting Shaldag troops to obtain forklift certifications specifically as part of the preparations for the operation.

“I felt right at home,” one of the IDF soldiers later told the intelligence officer in charge of the operation. “Just like you told me, I knew what the place looked like, where the mixers were and where to place the charges.”

They began placing explosives throughout the factory, especially on the three “planetary mixers,” which are critical components used for the production of missile fuel. For this, they used a small ATV they had brought in the helicopters to expedite the process of placing the charges around the factory.

Along the way, they also collected sensitive intelligence material. After completing their tasks, the soldiers departed the area quickly, and Shaldag’s head saboteur detonated the factory while they were still on the ground.

“We saw the explosion with our eyes, we felt it like a small earthquake,” said one of the commanders. Approximately one ton of explosive material was detonated in an earth-shaking blast, which included explosives that already existed in the factory.

After about one and a half hours on the ground, the forces took off again, without losing a single soldier. Almost an hour later, hundreds of Syrian soldiers arrived at the site, highlighting the potential danger to the small commando unit.

רגע של גאוות יחידה:
מפקד חיל-האוויר, אלוף תומר בר, ומפקד יחידת שלדג, סא"ל ב', בתום המבצע ההיסטורי "רבות הדרכים" בעומק סוריה. pic.twitter.com/1Zf3wlpWTR

— Israeli Air Force (@IAFsite) January 3, 2025

The operation was led on the ground by the commander of the IAF special forces wing, an officer at the rank of colonel, as well as the commander of Shaldag, Lt.-Col. B.

According to the IDF, it took the Syrians and the Iranians several days to understand what had happened at their secret facility inside the mountain in Masyaf.

After the IDF’s aerial campaigns in Syria, Lebanon, and Iran in recent months, Israel estimates that there are no advanced missile production capabilities left in Syria and Lebanon at all, while Iran’s capabilities were significantly damaged.

"The action of the Shaldag unit deep in Syria joins a series of daring actions that the IDF has carried out in recent months from the Gaza Strip, to Dahiyeh in Beirut and to Iran, with the aim of destroying the missile production capabilities of the Iranian axis," stated IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Herzi Halevi.

"Iran established for years a ring of fire and missiles on the borders of the State of Israel, and we hit both the ring and the head," he added.

Some of these capabilities still exist among Houthi terrorists in Yemen, but a senior IDF officer asserted, “We will get there, too.”