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Human Shields: Turkish Forces Suffer Casualties In Syrian Army Attack On Idlib Turkey and the United States are employing active diplomatic, media and even limited military measures to contain the Syrian Army offensive against terrorists in Greater Idlib. On January 31, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan threatened the Damascus government with a military action if the Syrian Army does not stop its anti-terrorism operation in Idlib. The official Turkish rhetoric says
Syrian War Report – January 28, 2020: Maarat Al-Numan Is Liberated On January 27 evening, units of the Syrian Army continued their operation in southeastern Idlib. Government troops liberated Hamidiya, Bseida, Maasaran, Tal Al-Shih, Maziyan and several other villages. By this advance, the army fully besieged Maarat al-Numan from the northern, southern and eastern directions. According to pro-government sources, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham militants are not planning to defend the encircled
https://southfront.org/turkish-army-battle-tanks-capabilities-modernization-prospects/ Turkey is working to develop its national industry and reequip its armed forces with modern military equipment. The worth of projects in this field is estimated to be around $77 billion. Ankara is paying special attention to the modernization and development of its tank fleet. Currently, Turkey has over 3,000 main battle tanks (MBTs), the most capable of which are the 339 Leopard-2A4 and 170 M60T Mk2 ‘Sabra’ MBTs.
Syrian War Report – January 15-17, 2020: Offensive Operations In Southern Idlib Resumed Late on January 15, pro-government forces, led by the 25th Special Mission Forces Division, resumed their offensive operations in Greater Idlib. Since then, they have taken control of several villages including Barsah, Nouhiya, Tell Khatrah, and Khirbat Dawud, west of the Abu al-Duhur airbase. The airbase liberated in January 2018 became a useful foothold for army units
https://southfront.org/thousands-turkish-proxy-fighters-flood-into-libya-amid-berlin-peace-talks/ Turkey is increasing its military involvement in the Libyan conflict. After officially sending its military advisers and officers to support the Tripoli-based Government of National Accord (GNA), Turkey set up air defense systems near Mitiga Airport. The airport hosts warplanes of the GNA Air Force, and Turkish-supplied Bayraktar TB2 combat drones. According to photos and videos available online, the deployed Turkish systems included the MIM-23 Hawk, the ACV-30 Korkut
https://southfront.org/underwhelming-turkish-invasion-of-libya/ In early 2020, Libya became one of the main hot points in the Greater Middle East with stakes raised by Turkey’s decision to launch a military operation there. On January 5, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced that Turkey had sent troops to Libya to support the Tripoli-based Government of National Accord (GNA). No Turkish soldiers will reportedly participate in direct fighting. Instead, they will create an operation center and
https://southfront.org/syrian-armys-creeping-offensive-on-idlib-never-ending-ceasefires-explained/ A new ceasefire in the Greater Idlib region of northwestern Syria started on January 12, at 00:01 local time. The ceasefire, once again brokered by Turkey and Russia, followed a series of successful advances by pro-government forces in southern Idlib. Just a few hours after start of the ceasefire, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (formerly the official branch of al-Qaeda in Syria) and its supposedly ‘moderate’ counterparts shelled Aleppo city, targeting
On January 10, SouthFront released a video entitled “What’s Behind Boeing Crash In Iran” on the January 8 airliner crash near Tehran. This video was produced because the Iranian side released new facts and details regarding the incident. https://southfront.org/how-and-why-iran-shot-down-ukrainian-boeing/ The Iran Air Defense Forces brought down the Ukraine International Airlines Boeing 737-800 (Flight PS752) near Tehran due to “a human error”, the General Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces
https://southfront.org/military-and-political-trends-of-2019-that-will-shape-2020/ In the year 2019 the world was marked with a number of emerging and developing crises. The threat of terrorism, conflicts in the Middle East, expanding instability in South America, never-ending military, political and humanitarian crises in Africa and Asia, expansion of NATO, insecurity inside the European Union, sanction wars and sharpening conflicts between key international players. One more factor that shaped the international situation throughout the year was
Syrian War Report – December 13, 2019: Turkey Boosts Military Presence In Northeast Members of al-Qaeda-linked Hayat Tahrir al-Sham repelled a Syrian Army attack on the area of al-Katibat al-Mahjura in southern Idlib on December 12. A day earlier militants captured this area and repelled a first Syrian Army attempt to regain it. Pro-militant sources claim that at least 25 soldiers were killed in the clashes. It’s interesting to note
https://southfront.org/ukrainian-military-after-5years-of-warfare/ Written and produced by SF Team: J.Hawk, Daniel Deiss, Edwin Watson Prior to the Maidan coup of 2014, Ukraine’s military existed in a political vacuum, suffering from benign neglect as well as corruption and other problems plaguing the Ukrainian state. Apart from downsizing, which meant the replacement of divisions by brigades, no modernization was conducted in the years of independence. While Ukraine did contribute to a variety of international
Syrian War Report – November 25, 2019: Syrian Army Developing Advance In Southern Idlib Tensions are heating up around the militant-held parts of Idlib and Aleppo provinces. On November 22, the Syrian Army conducted a wide-scale missile strike on militants’ positions in western Aleppo. According to pro-militant sources, at least 15 improvised rocket-assisted munitions were employed. 2 large weapon depots belonging to radicals were targeted. The strike came in response
https://southfront.org/russia-prepares-for-robot-wars/ The Russian Armed Forces continue preparations for future conflicts involving large quantities of unmanned aerial and ground vehicles, as well as with other robotized platforms. On November 10, the Russian Defense Ministry’s Zvezda TV channel revealed the military autonomous robotic complex “Kungas”, which is currently undergoing tests in the 12th Central Research Institute of the Russian Defense Ministry. The institute was created in the early 1950s for testing military
by Vasily Kolosov Translated by Leo. Source: https://e-news.su/mnenie-i-analitika/306358-uroki-kaddafi-vyucheny-vozdushnyy-most-v-siriyu.html November 18, 2019 – One of the reasons for the destruction of the Libyan state and the death of Colonel Qaddafi himself was the desire to sit “on two chairs”, the desire to get support and guarantees not only from Russia, but also from the West. Therefore, when there was a real threat to Libya and its leadership, Qaddafi hesitated for a
Syrian War Report – November 19, 2019: Kurdish Radicals Try To Burn Russian-Turkish Patrol Kurdish provocateurs have tried to burn a Typhoon MRAP vehicle of the Russian Military Police and a Kirpi MRAP vehicle of the Turkish Army in northern Syria. The incident happened during a joint Russian-Turkish patrol, which was conducted in the framework of the safe zone agreement reached between Ankara and Moscow. Russian and Turkish forces once
Syrian War Report – November 18, 2019: Further Escalation In Southern Idlib Over the past days, southern Idlib, southern Raqqah, northwestern al-Hasakah remained the main points of tensions in Syria. On November 16, the Syrian Army repelled an attack by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham and its allies on the hill of Khaznah in southeastern Idlib. According to pro-government sources, at least 7 militants were killed in the clashes. The Syrian Army,
Syrian War Report – November 4, 2019: ‘Withdrawing’ US Troops Setting Up New Military Bases The Syrian Army and Turkish-led forces are strengthening their positions on a contact line in northeastern Syria. A large convoy of Syrian Army reinforcements deployed in the towns of Abu Rasin and Umm Harmalah south of Ras al-Ayn. The convoy included T-72 battle tanks, BMP-1 infantry fighting vehicles, Gvozdika self-propelled 122 mm howitzer and BM-21
Syrian War Report – October 28, 2019: US Forces Kill al-Baghdadi In Ovenight Raid On Idlib Province U.S. Special Operations forces eliminated ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi during a nighttime raid into northwestern Syria on October 26, President Donald Trump officially announced. According to the President, Baghdadi died with his 3 young children after activating his suicide vest. Baghdadi’s body was mutilated by the blast. However, Trump said, “test
https://southfront.org/syrian-war-report-october-25-2019-russia-deploys-more-personnel-equipment-in-syria/ 276 more Russian Military Police officers and 33 additional equipment pieces will be deployed in Syria, Russia’s state media reported. These forces will likely participate in security operations along the Syrian-Turkish border to the east of the Euphrates River. Additionally to the deployment in Kobane, the Russian Military Police already started carrying out patrols near the city of Qamishly. On October 24, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Vershinin announced
https://southfront.org/how-russian-turkish-safe-zone-deal-shapes-course-of-syrian-conflict/ The military crisis in northeastern Syria started by the Turkish military offensive on Kurdish militias amid the US troops withdrawal deflated. On October 23, Turkey, Russia and Syria started implementing the ‘safe zone’ agreement reached by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Russian President Vladimir Putin a day earlier. Units of the Russian Military Police deployed in the border town of Kobani. According to the Russian Defense Ministry, the
