Israel's military said on Thursday its special forces had raided an underground missile production site in Syria in September that it said was primed to produce hundreds of precision missiles for use against Israel by the Iranian-backed Hezbollah.

The Israeli military confirmed on Thursday that dozens of its troops were flown into Syria in September to destroy an underground missile factory funded by Iran.Military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani told journalists in an online briefing that "this precision-guided missile factory was dug in the side of a mountain underground in the area of Masyaf.

Gallant was fired from the government in November by Netanyahu, after months of disagreements over the conduct of the war against Hamas in Gaza, but had kept his seat as an elected member of the Knesset.

Former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant resigned from parliament Wednesday, nearly two months after he was fired by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.