Israel Releases Names of Iran Officials Working against Tel Aviv in Syria

 Funeral of two Iranian Revolutionary Guards killed by Israeli missiles in Syria last March held in Tehran on April 4 (AFP).
Funeral of two Iranian Revolutionary Guards killed by Israeli missiles in Syria last March held in Tehran on April 4 (AFP).
TT

Israel Releases Names of Iran Officials Working against Tel Aviv in Syria

 Funeral of two Iranian Revolutionary Guards killed by Israeli missiles in Syria last March held in Tehran on April 4 (AFP).
Funeral of two Iranian Revolutionary Guards killed by Israeli missiles in Syria last March held in Tehran on April 4 (AFP).

Top military officials in Tel Aviv revealed on Monday details of an upcoming Israeli battle against Iran in Syria, where there are attempts to build an advanced Iran-made missile defense system that relies on Russia’s expertise in advanced missiles such as the S-300 and S-400.

Those who will activate the system include several generals and senior officers from the Revolutionary Guards.

Even though Israel has attacked and thwarted Iran’s primary attempts to anchor its forces in Syria, the Revolutionary Guards have yet to abandon their agenda for strengthening their presence in the Levantine nation, senior military officials told Hebrew media under the conditions of anonymity.

In recent years, the Revolutionary Guards has been trying to surround Israel with a belt of missile batteries that can withstand airstrikes and shoot down aircraft, which poses a strategic security threat to the Jewish state.

According to the Israeli officials, which included research and intelligence figures, ten senior Revolutionary Guards officials have been killed in Israeli operations so far.

The Israelis also disclosed the names of several Iranian and Hezbollah officials who are conducting operations on Syrian soil to alter the balance of power with Israel.

It was evident that the Israelis publishing these names and linking them to the names of killed leaders was a hint of a threat to their lives.

Ali Hassan Mahdavi, the head of the Syria and Lebanon division in the Quds Force, the Revolutionary Guards’ foreign operations arm, was among the names listed by the officials and published by the Haaretz newspaper.

Mahdavi had replaced Javad Ravari, who was dismissed earlier over condescending and violent behavior against Syrian army officials.

Israeli officers claimed that Iran is planning to establish air defense networks not only in Syria, but also in Yemen, Iraq, and Lebanon, aimed at other armies in Gulf countries and other countries in the region.



UK Warns of Iranian Attempts to Bring Ships into its Waters

Illustrative: The oil tanker Mercer Street, which came under attack last week off Oman, is seen moored off Fujairah, United Arab Emirates, Wednesday, Aug. 4, 2021 (AP)
Illustrative: The oil tanker Mercer Street, which came under attack last week off Oman, is seen moored off Fujairah, United Arab Emirates, Wednesday, Aug. 4, 2021 (AP)
TT

UK Warns of Iranian Attempts to Bring Ships into its Waters

Illustrative: The oil tanker Mercer Street, which came under attack last week off Oman, is seen moored off Fujairah, United Arab Emirates, Wednesday, Aug. 4, 2021 (AP)
Illustrative: The oil tanker Mercer Street, which came under attack last week off Oman, is seen moored off Fujairah, United Arab Emirates, Wednesday, Aug. 4, 2021 (AP)

A warning has gone out to seafarers in the Arabian Gulf over what appear to be attempts by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard to compel ships to enter Iranian waters.

A notice from the British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center on Friday said that there had been “several incidents involving VHF radio challenges to vessels.”

“It is assessed that these are most likely part of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps’ large-scale exercise, Great Prophet XVIII,” the UKMTO said.

Iran has been engaged in an extraordinary two-month-long military exercise across the country after being twice hit by Israel in retaliation for attacks against it during the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip.

While Iran has a history of harassing and impounding vessels, it hasn’t directly launched many such attacks recently. Instead, the Iran-backed Houthi group have been attacking ships since November 2023, a campaign that now appears to be winding down after the ceasefire in Gaza.

Iranian media reported a likely Guard exercise in the Arabian Gulf coming this weekend as well.