Israel's U.N. ambassador is accusing Iran of attempting to turn Syria into "the largest military base in the world" to destabilize the region, threaten Israel and "terrorize the entire free world."
Danny Danon told the Security Council Thursday that classified information he was releasing showed that 82,000 fighters are currently under Iranian authority in Syria.
He said the fighters include 60,000 Syrians, 9,000 members of Hezbollah, 3,000 Iranian Revolutionary Guard members and "10,000 members of violent Shia militias recruited from across the Middle East, including Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan."
The figures could not be independently confirmed, but Danon said the Iranians "speak about 100,000 troops under their control in Syria."
In addition, he said, Iran is investing "hundreds of millions of dollars" in Syria including on land and factories.
