Yuri Lyamin The ongoing conflict in Syria and Iraq has given rise to a wide range of different modifications of military equipment, especially the mounting of automatic guns, including heavy machine guns and cannon, on a variety of different chassis. One of the most popular systems this role is the Soviet-era 57 mm anti-aircraft gun
Miles Vining Recent photographs shared via social media have shown members of Kurdish Peshmerga and personal security detachments within the Iraqi Special Operations Force 1 Brigade (ISOF 1) carrying the 7.5″ PDW-CCS self-loading rifle produced by North Eastern Arms (NEA) of Ontario, Canada. The rifles in question are also pictured outfitted with NEA’s “Mini Can”
Matthew Sibley Between 16 and 23 August 2016 the People’s Protection Unit (Yekîneyên Parastina Gel; YPG) and Syrian government security forces (National Defence Force and Syrian Armed Forces) fought for control of the city of Al-Hasakah in North-east Syria. It ended with a ceasefire, mediated by Russia, and resulted in the Kurdish forces taking control
ImproGuns Images shared via social media purport to show new “silent weapons for special forces of the [Donetsk People’s] Republic”. Information accompanying the images claims they are manufactured locally by DPR (Donetsk People’s Republic) separatist forces in Donbass. One of the weapons, dubbed ‘Deaf-mute Aunt Tanya from Donbas’, appears to be a modified Russian TT-33 type self-loading pistol which has
Martin Kiser An Iranian Irbi News broadcast from 17 August 2016 (27 Mordad 1395) reported on the production of an Iraqi unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) named ‘Al Robot’. The broadcast shows images of the four-wheeled vehicle driving and firing from a static position. The Al Robot UGV was allegedly developed and built by two brothers affiliated
N.R. Jenzen-Jones Images shared on social media show a handful of watercraft associated with the Al-Bonyan Al-Marsous operations, operating out of Misrata, Libya. The force includes at least two tugs, the Assameeda, based out of Misrata, and the Almergheb, based out of Tripoli. These vessels have formerly been associated with the Libyan Coast Guard. The tugs are equipped with a range of weapon
ARES is proud to announce the release of the sixth publication in our Research Report series, entitled “Spanish C90-CR rocket launchers & Alhambra hand grenades in Yemen”. Some excerpts from the report follow: The report examines two products from the Spanish defence firm Instalaza S.A. which have been identified in the hands of Houthi rebel forces
Ilya A. On 5 August 2016, anti-government forces from the Free Syrian Army and the Islamist coalition Jaish al-Fateh stormed and captured a Syrian Arab Army (SAA) artillery school facility during operations aimed at breaking the Syrian regime siege of Eastern Aleppo. The following day, rebel group Ahrar al-Sham posted photos of materiel in the
N.R. Jenzen-Jones ARES continues to conduct significant data collection and analysis pertaining to the illicit sale of arms and munitions via social media and communications platforms in conflict and post-conflict zones. From time to time, we will be featuring items of interest uncovered during our research, here on The Hoplite. In late July, ARES recorded
Oliver Beyer & Ali Richter A video posted in August by anti-government forces during the fighting in Aleppo, Syria provides evidence of a range of camouflage patterns used in the conflict. At one point in the video, rebel forces move towards the front lines in BMP series infantry fighting vehicles and pickup trucks. As with
