Members of the Syrian security forces stand guard near military vehicles during an Alawite demonstration in Latakia, Syria, on Dec. 28, 2025. (Credit: Karam al-Masri/Reuters)
New revelations by Al Jazeera about plots allegedly orchestrated by former Syrian officers from the ousted Assad regime were published on Wednesday and Thursday. This time, some of the information disclosed is of particular concern to Beirut, notably the existence of an operations command cell in Lebanon, reportedly established by ousted General Souheil al-Hassan, head of the elite Tiger Forces unit of the former regime’s army, in supposed coordination with an Israeli agent.
In a video published on Dec. 31, Al Jazeera reveals, in excerpts from an investigation, that officers in question are preparing a "plot" to destabilize Syria, through military action against the government of Ahmad al-Sharaa on the Alawite coast, notably from Lebanon.
Al Jazeera claims to have acquired written documents as well as hours of audio recordings of several former regime officers, including Hassan, currently in Russia, concerning a plan to conduct military operations in coordination with Israel. The full investigation is set to air in mid-January, according to the channel.
The investigation is based on 74 hours of audio recordings between April and December 2025 and hundreds of documents, revealing "attempts by several officers to regroup, collect funds and acquire weapons" with the aim of destabilizing the country since the fall of Bashar al-Assad on Dec. 8, 2024.
The investigation video shows a call between three people: Hassan; Ghiath Dalla, a former brigadier general of the Assad forces, said to be currently in Lebanon; and a third Syrian whose identity is not disclosed.
The latter reportedly contacted Hassan and Ghiath Dalla, posing as an Israeli officer in charge of the Syrian dossier, to assist them and coordinate military actions on the coast. "I have dangerous information from the intelligence services," Hassan says during the call. During the exchange, the third man tells Hassan, "Israel, with all its capabilities, will be by your side." The Syrian officer then responds that Rami Makhlouf, businessman and cousin of Bashar al-Assad, is the person in charge of coordination and the main supporter of the plan in question.
Hassan's support for Israel's war on Gaza
During the call, Hassan also expresses his support for Israel's war on Gaza, claiming the "madness" of the Hamas-led Operation Al-Aqsa Flood on Oct. 7, 2023, "should come to an end." "May God curse them. It's over, and there are only a few of them left," Hassan tells the supposed Israeli officer.
On Jan. 1, other documents were published by Al Jazeera, according to which Hassan claims that 168,000 officers and soldiers are working with him in various Syrian cities such as Homs, Latakia or Tartus.
Other papers indicate the size, quantity and types of weapons held, but also that about twenty former Syrian air force pilots are believed to be in Lebanon and that the former high-ranking officer has set up a massive office in Lebanon at Hissa (Akkar), near the Syrian border, to serve as headquarters and command center for operations planned against the Syrian government.
Reacting to the Al Jazeera investigation, the Union of Municipalities of the Akkar Plain issued a statement Friday, assuring that the municipalities have "never overstepped the bounds of legality," and that the reception of Syrian refugees since 2011 has been motivated "solely by humanitarian considerations" and not by "political calculations." It emphasizes that all refugees present in its territory are registered and condemns any attempt "to disrupt the security of Lebanon or Syria" using the municipalities of the region.
Tarek Mitri expresses concern
According to consistent security sources contacted by L’Orient-Le Jour, thousands of former officials and associates of the fallen Syrian regime currently live in Lebanon among more than 75,000 Alawite refugees informally registered by authorities. These officers, NCOs, security branch chiefs, former torturers and militiamen are reportedly hiding in the country. They took advantage of the chaos in the early days after the fall of the regime to cross the Syrian-Lebanese border.
Tarek Mitri, deputy prime minister in Nawaf Salam's government and responsible for the Syrian dossier, responded Friday to these developments in a post on his X account. "What is circulating in the media and among the public regarding the movements of supporters of the former Syrian regime in Lebanon is of concern," he wrote, calling on Lebanese security agencies to verify the accuracy of information and take the necessary measures.
"It is their duty, and ours as well, to eliminate the dangers linked to any action that would harm the unity of Syria or threaten its security and stability, whether in Lebanon or coming from Lebanon," the message continues, calling for "greater cooperation" with Syrian authorities, "based on mutual trust and respect for the sovereignty of both countries and their common interests."
Later in the day, Sheikh Bilal Baroudi, Tripoli's secretary for Dar al-Fatwa, Lebanon's highest Sunni authority, warned in his sermon "against reports about the presence of fighters, not just displaced persons, in certain areas of Lebanon," citing the towns of Jabal Mohsen, Hakr and Hissa, neighborhoods and localities with predominantly Alawite populations. The cleric urged the security services "to take action."
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