IDF says it foiled attempt to smuggle weapons from Syria into Lebanon last night

By Emanuel Fabian

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18 October 2025, 8:31 pm

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Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian is The Times of Israel's military correspondent

Weapons seized by IDF troops during an attempted smuggling from Lebanon into Syria, late October 17, 2025. (Israel Defense Forces)

The IDF says it foiled an attempt to smuggle weapons from Syria into Lebanon in the Mount Hermon area late Friday night.

Troops of the 810th “Mountains” Regional Brigade and field interrogators of the Intelligence Directorate’s Unit 504 detained several suspects near the peak of Mount Hermon during the overnight operation, the military says.

According to the IDF, the suspects were trying to smuggle grenades, handguns, RPGs, and ammunition into Lebanon.

The suspects were taken for further questioning.

The IDF has been deployed to nine posts inside southern Syria since the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime in December 2024, mostly within a UN-patrolled buffer zone on the border between the countries. Two posts are on the Syrian side of Mount Hermon.

Troops have been operating in areas up to around 15 kilometers deep into Syria, aiming to capture weapons that Israel says could pose a threat to the country if they fall into the hands of “hostile forces,” including Lebanon’s Hezbollah.