The Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps' elite Quds Force was behind the terrorist cell that planted explosives on the Israel-Syria border in the Golan Heights, the Israel Defense Forces revealed on Thursday.
The Quds Force's Unit 840 is a "relatively secretive operational unit, which is responsible, among other things, for planning and establishing terrorism infrastructure outside Iran against Western targets and opposition groups," according to a report in The Jerusalem Post.
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IDF Spokesman Brig. Gen. Hidai Zilberman said the devices were likely planted several weeks ago by local Syrians under the direction of the Quds Force. The terrorist cell was identified by the IDF's Intelligence Unit.
The spokesman added that the IDF had been tracking the Quds Force for several months as they attempted to plant explosives at the border. In one such instance in August, elite troops from the Maglan unit, which specializes in operations deep behind enemy lines, foiled the attempt and took out the four-member cell, with the support of air cover.
In response to the latest attempted attack, Israel carried out a series of airstrikes that targeted sites from the Golan Heights to Damascus. Initially, the Syrian army reported that three of its soldiers were killed, although the final tally is thought to be higher.
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In a statement, the IDF said its "warplanes attacked military targets belonging to the Iranian Quds Force and the Syrian army tonight in Syria. The attack damaged warehouses, command posts and military complexes, and batteries of surface-to-air missiles."
This article was first published by i24NEWS.
