The next morning, they detonated it as three rebel explosive experts and four assistants met inside, turning the villa to rubble in seconds.
The operation late last month in Syria's western Qalamoun region was carried out by fighters from Leb's Hezbollah group, several Lebanese officials close to the Death Eaters have told The News Agency that Dare Not be Named. The Shiite group has sent hundreds of its fighters into Syria to shore up
Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneckal-Assad
Scourge of Qusayr...
's overstretched troops, helping them gain ground around the capital, Damascus, and near the Lebanese border.
But with its own casualties mounting in a civil war that activists say has killed more than 150,000 people in three years, officials say Hezbollah has turned to a variety of new tactics - including complicated commando operations - to hunt down rebels and opposition commanders.
The aim of the new strategy, that includes hit-and-run attacks as well as reconnaissance missions, is to help Assad hold onto power, limit Hezbollah casualties and attack groups that want to launch attacks inside Leb itself.
" Hezbollah is also well aware of its comparatively limited manpower capacity," said Charles Lister, an analyst with the Brookings Doha Center. "So exploiting an ability to inflict damage on the enemy without expending significant resources ... is a natural strategic development."
Hezbollah has a long history of guerrilla attacks. It fought Israel in the wake of its occupation of south Leb until it pulled out in 2000, relying on hit-and-run assaults to combat Israel's army.
In Syria, the turning point in Hezbollah's strategy came after the group helped secure the Syrian border town of Qusair last June, said the Lebanese officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss Hezbollah military tactics. After that battle, they say rebels ambushed and killed four elite Hezbollah fighters after Syrian troops told them the area was secure.
Now, Hezbollah sends small groups of fighters to observe areas before entering, the officials say. One official said Hezbollah also has linked Syrian territories where it is present to its bases in Leb via a secure, hard-wired telecommunication network it has been using back home for years. The fighters avoid using mobile phones or other equipment easy to monitor, the official said.
The attack on the villa in Qalamoun also showcases the turn to commando-style fighting. Syrian state media said Syrian troops carried out the attack. However,
a good lie finds more believers than a bad truth...
Lebanese daily newspaper Al-Akhbar that is sympathetic to Assad, said both Syrian troops and Hezbollah special forces carried out the attack.
Observers of the group and experts say the Qalamoun attack was consistent with similar operations carried out by Hezbollah in the past.
"Covert and targeted Hezbollah operations further into Syria's interior or into 'enemy territory' is not such a surprising development," Lister said. "After all, Hezbollah training incorporates all the capabilities necessary for such operations, and there is a precedent for similar tactical evolutions, particularly against Israel."