IAF Discloses Details of High-Stakes Operation to Destroy Iran-Funded Missile Facility in Syria
Tel Aviv, January 3, 2025 - In a rare disclosure of classified information, the Israeli Air Force (IAF) revealed details of its daring operation codenamed "Operation Many Ways" during which 120 commandos raided and destroyed an alleged underground Iran-funded missile manufacturing facility in western Syria.
According to officials from the IAF, the mission took place on September 8, 2024, with no Israeli forces suffering injuries. The target facility, dubbed "Deep Layer," was reportedly located near the Masyaf region of western Syria, a stronghold for Syrian air defenses.
"This op was years in the making," an IAF spokesperson stated. "We had been monitoring and gathering intelligence on this site since 2017, following an Israeli airstrike that disrupted Iran's surface-to-air missile production capabilities."
Construction of the Deep Layer facility began after the 2017 attack on Iran's Scientific Studies and Research Center (CERS) in southern Syria, where it is believed an Iranian rocket engine manufacturing site was located. After shifting operations underground, the facility became operational by 2021, boasting advanced production capabilities.
"Deep Layer" boasted three primary entrances, as well as 16 dedicated production rooms equipped with equipment to mix rocket fuels and construct missiles capable of targeting destinations over 300 kilometers away.
Syria's geographical location near the Israeli border would have allowed Iranian-missile producing Hezbollah to send missile shipments via Syria to reach its Lebanese stronghold. The underground facility's design enabled the avoidance of Israel airborne attacks, making it a crucial component of their arsenal with potential strategic ramifications for regional safety.
In a pre-planned operation set up under the auspices of an existing combat scenario that involved multiple multi-front conflicts from October 2023 onward, elite Israeli commando units were selected to undertake this risky initiative. Training went according to scenarios similar to those that might unfold.
Training sessions included the use of forklifts, simulations and high-stakes maneuvers designed to prepare troops for every eventuality during their covert operation.
The highly-coordinated mission brought together elements such as combat, surveillance and transportation teams in an all-out bid to thwart potential enemy missile systems threats. Four heavily armed helicopters took around one hundred military operatives from elite Shaldag Units deep into Syria's western wilderness area before deploying on a precise pinpoint targeting system using 21 IAF fighters, reconnaissance planes, and specialized ground cover drone systems.
Once airborne near the mission target, low-flying helicopter transports evaded dense air defenses before conducting covert entry into a heavily guarded underground site where troops took over security and deployed makeshift forklift operation units. Approximately six hundred sixty pounds of explosives were laid out across key manufacturing equipment before the unit was swiftly extracted in under three hours with complete operation success.
No Israeli casualties occurred, but claims report 14 fatalities among Syrian soldiers, or even lower numbers - at various sources cite much higher.