This week, reports have emerged that Iran has been building a Scud factory in northwest Syria manufacturing long-range rockets capable of reaching Israel. Satellite images show the site under construction in Baniyas, south of Latakia, an area known for supporting the Assad regime.
It is believed that the building of the factory began last year and will completed by the end of this year.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly warned against Iran’s efforts to establish a permanent presence in Syria, last week stating that Israel was watching any progress closely and would take action against any threat.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed that Israel’s “policy is clear: We vehemently oppose the military build-up by Iran and its proxies, primarily Hezbollah, in Syria and we will do whatever it takes to protect Israel’s security”.
The images of the buildings seen in Syria were compared to a rocket factory near Tehran, with striking similarities between them.
Earlier this year the IDF confirmed that Iran has also reportedly been constructing weapons production factories in Lebanon under the control of Hezbollah.
Since the Syrian civil war erupted in 2011, hundreds of thousands have died and millions have been displaced. Israel – who remains officially at war with Syria – initially responded to the civil war by providing medical treatment to wounded Syrians, treating people in field hospitals on the border and in public hospitals, mostly in northern Israel since 2013.
Israel has carried out multiple strikes in Syria against weapons and arms convoys headed for Hezbollah since the outbreak of the civil war in 2011, and intercepted Syrian mortars in a number of spillover incidents.
