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.



Iran Says 5 Inmates at Evin Prison Were Killed in Israel's Airstrike on Tehran

Evin Prison (File photo: Reuters)
Evin Prison (File photo: Reuters)
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Iran Says 5 Inmates at Evin Prison Were Killed in Israel's Airstrike on Tehran

Evin Prison (File photo: Reuters)
Evin Prison (File photo: Reuters)

An Israeli airstrike on Iran's capital last month killed five inmates at Evin prison and resulted in the escape of several others, Iranian media reported Saturday.

The semi-official ILNA news agency and other Iranian media quoted a spokesman for Iran’s judiciary that the five inmates killed in the June 23 strike had been convicted on financial offences. The spokesman didn't name the victims or give any further details.

The judiciary’s own news website, Mizanonline quoted spokesman Asghar Jahangir as saying only that “small number" of inmates were killed. He added that an “insignificant number of inmates” had also escaped and that authorities would soon bring them back into custody, AFP reported.

Jahangir said no one serving time at Evin prison for working with Israel's spy agency Mossad was injured in the attack.

Iranian authorities last month put the death toll from the airstrike at 71. But Iranian media later raised that number to 80 including staff, soldiers, inmates and visiting family members.

It's unclear why Israel targeted the prison. The Israeli Defense Ministry had said on the day of the airstrikes that 50 aircraft dropped 100 munitions on military targets “based on high-quality and accurate intelligence from the Intelligence Branch.”

The New York-based Center for Human Rights had criticized Israel for striking the prison - seen as a symbol of repression of any opposition - saying it violated the principle of distinction between civilian and military targets.

The 12-day air war left more than 1,060 dead in Iran and 28 dead in Israel.