The Islamic Republic is likely to sell surface-to-air missiles to Syria, state television said on Friday, to help reinforce the air defenses of Tehran's close ally in the face of frequent Israeli air strikes.
In a report on Thursday night, IRIB News said Iran and Syria have reached an agreement for the delivery of equipment related to air defenses and electronic warfare as "Syria needs to rebuild its air defense network and requires precision bombs for its fighter planes."
Having felt threatened by increased Israel attacks on facilities needed by Iran to deliver arms and equipment to its proxy forces, "Syria needs to reconstruct the network of its air defenses and also required precision bombs for its fighter jets," the report said. "It is very likely that we will witness the supply of Iran's radars and defense missiles, such as the Khordad 15 missile system, to reinforce Syria's air defenses." The Islamic Republic claims Unveiled the missile system is capable of detecting fighter jets and combat drones from 150 kilometers away and tracking them within a range of 120 kilometers.
Amid new sanctions by Western countries on Iran’s Revolutionary Guard for human rights violations and other mischiefs, the multi-role organization is ramping up Syria’s air defense system, despite rampant poverty in Iran.
Israel has also in recent months intensified strikes on Syrian airports and air bases to disrupt Iran's increasing use of aerial supply lines to deliver arms to allies in Syria and Lebanon, including Lebanon's Hezbollah.