Israel behind serial sabotage of Iranian tankers, report says

Mar 15, 2021

A series of sabotage incidents on Iranian tanker ships headed to Syria in recent years were carried out by Israel, The Wall Street Journal reported Friday.

More than a dozen Iranian tankers were hit with sea mines and limpet mines en route to Syria, where they were scheduled to offload fuel to aid the cash-strapped regime in Damascus in violation of US and international sanctions on Syria and Iran.

The sabotage incidents began in 2019, the Journal reported, and have included attacks on weapons cargo. Some of the attacks have reportedly received tacit US support.

The revelation adds new depth to Israel’s quiet campaign against Iranian interests in Syria. Israel has conducted hundreds of airstrikes in Syria in recent years to prevent Iranian projectile weapons from approaching Israel’s borders.

The United States has provided intelligence and military support for that airstrike campaign since 2018, Al-Monitor has previously reported.