Eighteen years after the covert operation took place, former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert confirmed that Israel was directly responsible for the August 1, 2008, assassination of Brigadier General Mohammed Suleiman, President Bashar al-Assad’s top security and nuclear adviser, at his luxury beachfront chalet in Tartus.
Writing in a newly published book, Olmert detailed how elite Israeli naval commandos from Shayetet 13 executed the high-risk amphibious strike. Suleiman, who served as the primary manager for Syria’s clandestine Al-Kibar nuclear reactor (destroyed by Israeli airstrikes in 2007) and the key liaison for Iranian arms transfers to Hezbollah, was hosting a dinner party on his seaside terrace when the team struck.
According to Olmert’s account, Shayetet 13 commandos emerged silently from the Mediterranean waters under cover of darkness. Positioning themselves approximately 150 meters from the balcony on opposite flanks, sniper units positively identified Suleiman among his guests without raising alarm. When given the green light, snipers fired three synchronized rounds, striking Suleiman in the back of the neck and killing him instantly. The naval operatives immediately retreated to the shoreline and escaped via awaiting fast boats.
For years, the operation was shrouded in silence. The Syrian regime suppressed details surrounding the killing, sparking intense speculation that Suleiman died during an internal purge or power struggle after investigators reportedly uncovered $80 million in cash at his residence. While leaked U.S. National Security Agency (NSA) intelligence cables published by The Intercept in 2015 previously attributed the hit to Israeli naval commandos, Olmert’s disclosure marks the first direct public acknowledgment by a former Israeli head of government.
