General Javad Ghaffari: Most Powerful Iranian Military Figure in Syria

Syrian air defense batteries responding to what the Syrian regime media said were Israeli missiles targeting Damascus (File Photo: AFP)
Syrian air defense batteries responding to what the Syrian regime media said were Israeli missiles targeting Damascus (File Photo: AFP)
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General Javad Ghaffari: Most Powerful Iranian Military Figure in Syria

Syrian air defense batteries responding to what the Syrian regime media said were Israeli missiles targeting Damascus (File Photo: AFP)
Syrian air defense batteries responding to what the Syrian regime media said were Israeli missiles targeting Damascus (File Photo: AFP)

Security services in Tel Aviv marked Iranian general Javad Ghaffari as the most powerful Iranian military figure in Syria, claiming he remains under the direct command of al-Quds Force commander Qasem Soleimani.

The services leaked information to the media that Ghaffari is the mastermind of a recent plot to attack Israel with drones.

The security report indicated that Ghaffari is a veteran of the Iran-Iraq War and one of the leaders of al-Quds Force. He currently serves as the commander of the Iranian forces in Syria and leads the Iranian entrenchment efforts in the war-torn country.

Ghaffari leads tens of thousands of Shiites, from various nations, who operate throughout Syria, including Damascus, Aleppo and the country's east. Ghaffari has recruited the fighters, trained them and supervised the attack, said the report.

Ghaffari personally supervised the recruitment of elements responsible for plotting the drone attacks on Israeli targets, which Tel Aviv claims a recent bombing near Damascus, has thwarted his mission.

Israel on Saturday launched the strikes to prevent what it said was an Iranian attack on Israel.

Israeli Army spokesman revealed that Hezbollah commanders Yasser Ahmad Daher and Hassan Youssef Zbib were killed in the strike along with two other members, who were trained to use drones in Iran.

The report stated that al-Quds Force wanted to launch killer drones into Israeli territory from the Arneh area in retaliation for recent Israeli attacks on Iranian sites in Iraq. The two drones were set to be flown on August 22, followed by another attack on the night of August 24.

Other sources said that in 2016, around 7,000 fighters led by Ghaffari participated in besieging Aleppo, Syria.

In April 2018, Syrian opposition websites reported that Ghaffari was transporting and distributing pro-Iranian militia elements from the countries of the region, especially Iraq and Lebanon, as well as Afghanistan, to implement the scheme of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in establishing a road link between Tehran and Beirut.

Meanwhile, the Israeli army announced the launch of its social media pages in the Farsi language.

A spokesman said though the decision to set up Farsi accounts was reportedly taken in recent months, it was now a good opportunity for Iranians to see what Soleimani is doing with their money.



Russia, Ukraine Complete Second Round of Prisoner Exchange

Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs) react following a prisoner swap at an undisclosed location, Ukraine, 10 June 2025. (EPA)
Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs) react following a prisoner swap at an undisclosed location, Ukraine, 10 June 2025. (EPA)
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Russia, Ukraine Complete Second Round of Prisoner Exchange

Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs) react following a prisoner swap at an undisclosed location, Ukraine, 10 June 2025. (EPA)
Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs) react following a prisoner swap at an undisclosed location, Ukraine, 10 June 2025. (EPA)

Russia and Ukraine said Tuesday they had exchanged captured soldiers, the second stage of an agreement struck at peace talks last week for each side to free more than 1,000 prisoners.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Tuesday's exchange saw "the return of our injured and severely wounded warriors from Russian captivity."

Neither side said how many soldiers had been freed in the swap -- the second in as many days following another exchange on Monday.

The two sides had agreed in Istanbul last week to release all wounded soldiers and all under the age of 25.

Russia's defense ministry said: "In accordance with the Russian-Ukrainian agreements reached on June 2 in Istanbul, the second group of Russian servicemen was returned."

Zelensky said further exchanges would follow.

"The exchanges are to continue. We are doing everything we can to find and return every single person who is in captivity."

The agreement had appeared in jeopardy over the weekend, with both sides trading accusations of attempting to thwart the exchange.

Russia says Ukraine has still not agreed to collect the bodies of killed soldiers, after Moscow said more than 1,200 corpses were waiting in refrigerated trucks near the border.

Russia said it had agreed to hand over the remains of 6,000 killed Ukrainian soldiers, while Kyiv said it would be an "exchange".

Moscow and Kyiv have carried out dozens of prisoner exchanges since Russia invaded in 2022, triggering Europe's largest conflict since World War II.