Syria says it killed man attempting to smuggle landmines to Hezbollah

Syrian authorities say they killed a man and arrested four others who were attempting to smuggle hundreds of landmines to Lebanon’s Hezbollah terrorist group.

In a statement, the interior ministry says it launched a raid in Al-Jebbe, near the capital Damascus, during which “four people were arrested and a fifth neutralized after a clash.”

Khaled Abbas Taktouk, internal security director for the Yabrud region, which is close to the Lebanese border, is quoted as saying that “1,250 mines armed with detonators” were seized.

According to the statement, they were “intended to be smuggled to Hezbollah” in Lebanon.

Under deposed president Bashar al-Assad, Syria was a key plank of Iran’s so-called “axis of resistance” against Israel and enabled the transfer of weapons and money from Iran to Hezbollah. The new government in Damascus, dominated by the Islamist-led rebels who toppled Assad, has rejected Iran and attempted to cut off the supply of weapons to Hezbollah.

Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.

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