Syria Foils Weapons Smuggling to Lebanon as Qatar Unveils Major Aid Package

ERBIL (Kurdistan24) — Syrian authorities said on Monday they had thwarted an attempt to smuggle a large cache of weapons into Lebanon, days after Israeli air strikes targeted several border crossings alleged to be used for arms transfers to Hezbollah.

State-run SANA news agency reported that security forces intercepted the shipment in a vehicle in the Bureij area near the Lebanese border. Quoting a security source, SANA said authorities seized nine anti-tank guided missiles, 68 rocket-propelled grenade rounds, two 107mm rockets, and five boxes of ammunition, before raiding a smugglers’ hideout in the nearby Nabek district.

Lebanon and Syria share a porous 330-kilometre (205-mile) border long associated with illicit cross-border activity. The reported seizure followed Israeli strikes last Wednesday on four border crossings, which Israel said were being used by Hezbollah to smuggle weapons.

Under former president Bashar al-Assad, Syria served as a key conduit for Iran’s so-called “axis of resistance,” facilitating the transfer of weapons and funds to Hezbollah. The Lebanese group played a central role during Syria’s civil war, fighting alongside Assad’s forces as he suppressed a popular uprising.

Since Assad’s ouster in December 2024, Syria’s new authorities—dominated by Islamist factions—have rejected Iranian influence and moved to curb weapons flows to Hezbollah. Last month, Syrian officials said they killed one man and arrested four others accused of attempting to smuggle hundreds of landmines into Lebanon. Lebanon, under sustained US pressure, has committed to disarming Hezbollah.

Qatar announces multi-million-dollar aid package for Lebanon

Separately on Monday, Qatar announced a multi-million-dollar aid package for Lebanon, focused primarily on the country’s struggling electricity sector and refugee-related support.

The Qatar Development Fund said the package is valued at about $430 million, with up to $400 million earmarked for the energy sector, including a 10 percent grant component. Qatari Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Mohammed al-Khulaifi told a press conference in Beirut that the assistance includes a $40 million grant to support electricity generation and distribution.

Lebanon’s electricity sector has cost the state more than $40 billion since the end of the 1975–1990 civil war, with successive governments failing to curb losses or overhaul decaying infrastructure. Last year, Beirut signed a $250 million agreement with the World Bank to modernize the sector.

Khulaifi also announced the launch of a project, in coordination with the UN migration agency, to support the voluntary and safe return of Syrian refugees from Lebanon to Syria. The first phase, valued at $20 million, aims to assist around 100,000 people by securing housing in Syria and providing food and medicine for three months after their return.

According to the UN refugee agency, more than 500,000 Syrians returned from Lebanon last year, though about 115,000 fled to Lebanon following Assad’s removal. An estimated one million Syrian refugees remain in the country.

Lebanon has intensified calls for international assistance to facilitate refugee returns, particularly after the economic collapse that began in late 2019 and amid reductions in foreign aid. Qatari officials said Doha remains committed to supporting both Lebanon’s recovery and Syria’s reconstruction, with Qatari companies already signing major contracts in Syria’s energy, electricity, and transport sectors.