Syria’s Interior Ministry announced July 16 that security forces seized a weapons cache at the al-Tanf border crossing with Iraq that included long-range missiles, anti-tank guided missiles, and approximately 100 fiber-optic first-person view (FPV) drones capable of defeating electronic jamming.
A large seizure of Iranian weapons and drones bound for Lebanese Hezbollah, including 100 fiber optic drones and anti-tank missiles, was intercepted by Syrian authorities earlier today, as Iran continues to try and bolster the position of the previously premier non-state actor in… pic.twitter.com/9CBsq6zi1E
— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) July 16, 2026
The weapons were concealed in an oil tanker truck declared as carrying heavy fuel oil and bound for the Syrian coastal city of Baniyas. Syria’s General Authority of Ports and Customs said the cache was found during a routine inspection, and Syria’s Interior Ministry said preliminary investigations confirmed the shipment was destined for Hezbollah in Lebanon.
The operation reportedly took place July 7, with the announcement made Thursday.
The fiber-optic FPV drones in the cache are technically distinct from the radio-frequency-guided variants widely deployed in Ukraine. Fiber-optic FPVs transmit control signals through a physical tether rather than a wireless link, making them resistant to the electronic countermeasures Israel employs against drone threats in southern Lebanon.
Images published by Syria’s Interior Ministry showed the drones alongside anti-tank guided missiles in the seized cache.
Shafaq News, citing a senior Iraqi security source, reported the tanker left Iraqi territory nine days before interception with customs seals intact and instructions not to open the vehicle, pointing to insider access within Iraqi logistics infrastructure.
#Syria: #IRGC took advantage of the 100s of Iraqi oil tankers traveling daily to Baniyas to smuggle a truckload of weapons intended for Hezbollah.
A large cache of anti-tank weapons and a hundred of fiber-optic FPV drones was seized at the Tanf border crossing after entering… https://t.co/rU4zzSymgO pic.twitter.com/woqyJBjZiv
— Qalaat Al Mudiq (@QalaatAlMudiq) July 16, 2026
Hezbollah has denied the allegations, calling the Syrian government’s accusation “baseless.”
Iraq’s Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi announced a high-level joint committee with Syria to investigate. Iraq’s Joint Operations Command (JOC) said it would “hold those responsible for any shortcomings accountable.”
Syria’s post-Assad government, led by Ahmed al-Sharaa since late 2024, has systematically moved to close the land corridors Iran used to route arms to Hezbollah through Syrian territory.
