Reuters news agency, in a special report published on Thursday, May 1, 2025, revealed confidential documents obtained from Iran’s embassy in Damascus. The documents expose the scale of the Iranian regime’s ambitious plan to rebuild Syria’s economy and turn the country into a hub for regional influence. The report illustrates Tehran’s expansionist ambitions in Syria, which ultimately failed with the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime.
Since the start of Syria’s civil war in 2011, the Iranian regime became one of the main backers of Bashar al-Assad’s regime. Iran provided logistical, financial, and training support, and deployed military forces, including Quds Force units and Shiite militias, playing a critical role in keeping Assad in power. These efforts were aimed at maintaining Iran’s regional influence, securing supply routes to Hezbollah in Lebanon, and countering regional rivals such as Israel and Arab states.
During the Syrian civil war, the Iranian regime spent billions of dollars in support of Assad. These investments included infrastructure projects, reconstruction of war-torn areas, and the creation of economic networks aimed at cementing Iran’s economic and political influence in Syria. Abbas Akbari, who was appointed in 2012 as head of Iran-Syria Economic Relations Development Headquarters, played a key role in advancing these projects. Documents reveal that he was inspired by the U.S. Marshall Plan (the post-World War II European reconstruction program) as a model for rebuilding Syria.
However, these ambitions faced numerous obstacles. Financial corruption, mismanagement, and resistance from opposition groups in Syria, along with international pressure and sanctions, prevented the full realization of the plans. In December 2024, with the offensive by opposition rebels and the fall of Damascus, Assad’s regime collapsed. The remaining documents in the Iranian regime’s embassy, discovered by opposition forces and the media, revealed the details of these ambitious programs.
In April 2024, an airstrike attributed to Israel targeted the Iranian consulate building in Damascus, killing seven senior Quds Force members, including Brigadier General Mohammad Reza Zahedi, and escalating tensions between the Iranian regime and Israel. The attack was condemned by many countries, but Israel claimed the target was a covert Quds Force military base.
According to Reuters, a 33-page document prepared in May 2022 by the political-economic department of Iran’s embassy in Damascus reveals that Iran had an ambitious plan to rebuild Syria and establish an economic empire in the country. The document details Iran’s multi-billion-dollar investments in infrastructure, agriculture, and industry.
The document refers to economic opportunities in Syria amounting to over $400 billion and suggests that Iran could deepen its influence over Assad’s government through the country’s reconstruction. However, the rapid fall of Assad’s regime at the hands of opposition rebels, along with the hasty withdrawal of Iranian regime diplomats and militias, shattered these ambitions.
Reports also indicate that other documents, including folders containing intelligence information, were discovered by an Israeli journalist from Israel’s Channel 12 inside the Iranian embassy. These documents reveal Iran’s covert activities in Syria, including surveillance of opposition groups and coordination with proxy militias.
These plans completely collapsed with the fall of Assad’s regime and the swift political changes in Syria. The failure rendered Iran’s substantial financial and human costs in Syria fruitless and highlighted the high risks of Tehran’s regional interventions.
