Syrian President Bashar Assad was involved in the ejection of Iranian Quds Force Commander Jawad Ghafari, Saudi media outlets Al Arabiya and Al Hadath reported on Wednesday.
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According to the reports, Assad asked the Iranian regime to withdraw Ghafari due to the "overactivity" of the Quds Force in Syria, which the Syrian dictator considered to be a breach of sovereignty in multiple sectors.
The Saudi media outlets said Ghafari's exit from Syria was part of a negative trend that Iran has faced regarding its entrenchment efforts there.
Al Arabiya quoted a "knowledgeable source" as saying Assad and other senior Syrian officials stood behind Ghafari's return to Iran following months of disagreements between Damascus and Tehran.
A source inside the Syrian regime told the Al Hadath daily the general had admitted ordering weapons and men to be stationed in places that were explicitly designated as off-limits by the regime.
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The report is of particular significance, according to the source, given Israeli strikes on the state.
The source further said the general had authorized a series of military strikes on US and Israeli forces without Damascus' approval.
The publications claimed that Ghafari circumvented Syrian mechanisms while smuggling goods for black-market production, forming competition to the legal Syrian market. It added that Iranian forces in Syria exploited the country's natural resources and its economic crisis for their personal gain and evaded tax payments to the Syrian state.
On Tuesday, Israeli daily Yedioth Ahronoth published an analysis arguing Assad was dissatisfied with Iranian forces operating in his area and that Israel was taking advantage of that fact to step up attacks on Iranian targets.
Foreign media outlets have identified no less than seven airstrikes on Syrian territory. According to Syrian reports, the strikes targeted armories belonging to pro-Iranian forces inside Syria as well as elements of Hezbollah's precision missile system.
JNS.org contributed to this report.
