{
  "id": 18012980,
  "title": "Inside Syria's campaign against Hezbollah: How Damascus is countering Iran’s proxy - analysis",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/03/inside-syrias-campaign-against-hezbollah-how-damascus-is-countering",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-11-03T20:12:51.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Jerusalem Post",
    "slug": "jerusalem-post",
    "url": "https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/article-913748"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Since December 2024, the new Syrian government has intensified efforts to target Hezbollah-linked networks following the fall of the Assad regime. A recent raid in Homs resulted in the arrest of members of a Hezbollah-affiliated cell and the seizure of explosives intended for an attack on the city's refinery. This marks a pattern of Syrian security forces conducting raids on Hezbollah operatives in recent years.\n\nHezbollah previously supported the Assad regime during the civil war, intervening in 2013 to bolster President Bashar al-Assad's forces around Al-Qusayr. In response, Syria provided a vital land route for Iranian weapons shipments to Hezbollah. Under President Ahmad al-Sharaa, Syrian security forces have worked to dismantle these networks, seize weapons, and prevent Hezbollah's reestablishment in Syria. This campaign has included arrests of alleged Hezbollah operatives, operations against weapons smuggling, and clashes along the Lebanese border.\n\nMajor Hezbollah busts by Syria include a February 2025 operation in Damascus' countryside where security forces apprehended groups trafficking weapons to Hezbollah. In March, Syrian authorities raided a Hezbollah-linked cell in Sayyida Zaynab, preparing for criminal activities. September saw a raid in Sasa and Kanaker, resulting in the arrest of a Hezbollah cell allegedly trained in Lebanon and the seizure of 19 Grad rockets and anti-tank missiles. February's Mezzeh operation dismantled a cell that had fired rockets at a military airport, with weapons allegedly originating from Hezbollah.\n\nIn May, coordinated arrests of an alleged Hezbollah cell planning assassinations of senior officials were announced, along with the seizure of weapons, explosives, and surveillance equipment. In July, shipments of weapons for Hezbollah were seized, believed to be destined for the group. These recent arrests underscore the Syrian government's ongoing efforts to disrupt Hezbollah's former Syrian operation and weapons corridors since the regime's collapse.",
  "summary": "Recent incidents illustrate how the collapse of the Assad regime has disrupted Hezbollah’s former Syrian operations and weapons corridors.",
  "key_points": [
    "Syrian government intensified campaign against Hezbollah-linked networks since December 2024.",
    "Recent raids in Homs and Sayyida Zaynab resulted in arrests and seizure of explosives and weapons.",
    "Syrian security forces aim to disrupt Hezbollah's former Syrian operation and weapons corridors."
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": "https://urgent.news/ill/18012980.png",
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "The National Business",
        "title": "Hezbollah is betting its future on Iran as Lebanon becomes a proxy battlefield",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/03/hezbollah-is-betting-its-future-on-iran-as-lebanon-becomes-a-proxy",
        "published": "2026-11-03T14:00:00.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}