Syria says it arrests Hezbollah cell near Golan

Syrian authorities said on Tuesday they had arrested a cell affiliated with Lebanon’s Hezbollah near the occupied Golan Heights, saying it had been planning attacks.

Hours before the announcement, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said there were indications that Israel’s enemies were trying to attack it ahead of elections scheduled for 27 October.

In a statement carried by Syrian state television, the Internal Security Forces said that, in a “pre-emptive security operation”, the General Intelligence Service, in cooperation with the Internal Security Forces, had foiled a “sabotage plot” in the Yarmouk Basin in Daraa and arrested a three-member cell affiliated with Hezbollah.

The statement said the operation followed close monitoring of an attempt by the cell to prepare rocket-launching platforms to carry out attacks aimed at destabilising security and stability. It said the platforms had been completely dismantled and that investigations with the detainees were continuing before they were referred to the relevant court.

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