Iran's Strong Warning to Damascus; Attacking More Than 100 Targets in Syria in Case of Intervention Against Hezbollah

Afghan Voice Agency (AVA): The Lebanese news site Uninews, citing informed sources, announced that Iran neutralized the scenario of military intervention by Syrian rebels in Lebanon, which was being prepared at the request of the United States, and sent a direct warning to Damascus that any military entry into Lebanese territory would be met with the activation of multiple fronts inside Syria and on its borders.

 

Unews added: Iran's warning included the threat of activating the Syrian-Iraqi borders, opening a line of conflict in Homs, supporting the Alawite movements on the Syrian coast, and encouraging the Kurds to return to the field around Aleppo. This warning was not only addressed to Damascus, but also to Ankara, Baghdad, Doha, and Riyadh.

 

This warning carried the message that any Syrian adventure against Hezbollah in Lebanon would not be limited to the Bekaa Valley and could turn into a wide-ranging regional confrontation within the Syrian geography. Accordingly, Iran was able to turn any possible Syrian intervention in Lebanon from a military option that could be offered by the United States into a costly regional adventure. The scenario promoted by figures associated with the US embassy in Lebanon is based on the entry of Syrian armed units from the Al-Masna border crossing towards Chtoura in the Bekaa Valley of Lebanon and then the city of Zahle; at the same time, a movement from the eastern heights towards the city of Baalbek is taking place.

 

The proposed scenario also includes the simultaneous declaration of the city of Tripoli as a zone of Syrian influence, with the progressive forces using these cities, especially some areas with a Sunni majority, and the supposed goal of this operation is to hit Hezbollah’s missile infrastructure in the Bekaa and create political and military pressure on the movement to withdraw and accept new security arrangements.

 

Unews stated: This development has forced some regional parties to review the costs of this scenario, especially since Syria, after profound military and political changes, apparently cannot afford a new civil war. Also, the Iranian warning, which was transmitted to Damascus via Turkey, included the threat of a missile attack; an attack that would start from Damascus and in the first wave would include more than 100 strategic targets, including the Syrian presidential palace.

 

In this regard, "Hamid al-Shatri", the head of the Iraqi Intelligence Service, traveled to Damascus and conveyed to Syrian officials Baghdad's opposition to any Syrian military expansion into Lebanese territory, warning that in the event of an intervention against Hezbollah, Iraqi forces, led by groups from the Popular Mobilization Forces, may enter Syrian territory.

 

This Lebanese news site wrote about the positions of the Arab countries in the region regarding this military adventure of the Syrian rebels in Lebanon, stating that the Emirates is willing to finance any Syrian military operations in Lebanon, and Abu Dhabi has even announced its readiness to pay the salaries of the troops, in addition to covering the costs of combat operations.

 

Meanwhile, Qatar opposes Syrian intervention in Lebanon; on the other hand, Saudi Arabia does not object to an intervention within the framework of arrangements that weaken Hezbollah without causing the region to explode. Univision concluded by writing that Hezbollah is taking information about a possible Syrian intervention very seriously and has taken precautionary measures in the Bekaa region to counter any possible Syrian intervention.

 

Accordingly, Hezbollah also does not see this scenario as an isolated operation by Syria, but rather as part of the American-Israeli-regional pressure aimed at collapsing the resistance structure in Lebanon from the east, especially after Israel's failure on the southern front.