Volcanoes In Damascus - Was Hezbollah Involved With Developing Chemical Munitions?

Regular readers of the blog will be familiar with two weapons used by pro-government forces known as IRAMs (Improvised Rocket Assisted Munitions) and UMLACAs (Unidentified Munitions Linked to Alleged Chemical Attacks), both of which I've written a number of articles on.  At it's most basic, and IRAM is an artillery rocket that's had the standard warhead removed, and replaced by a much larger warhead, and in Syria these have been launched from single barrel stand launchers, and four barrel truck mounted launchers (pictured below)

UMLACAs are munitions that were linked to the August 21st Sarin attack, and come in both an explosive type, and chemical type.  The munitions come in two sizes, with the larger type, fired from a single barrel launcher, shown below

One question that remains is what the Syrian forces call these weapons.  The following video posted by the Syrian National Defence Force is our first clue to what the IRAM is called

At 1m28s the narrator describes them as "bourkan" rockets, which translates to Volcano, and if you search for "Volcano" in Arabic there's some results that show the same munition appearing to be used, including the following video

The description claims to show Hezbollah using a Volcano rocket, and is a copy of an earlier video claiming to show Hezbollah in Eastern Ghouta, Damascus.  Hezbollah appear to have used their own design of IRAM in the fighting in Qusayr, Homs, and it would be interesting if both the Syrian National Defence Force and Hezbollah are using the same term for IRAMs, even though the design differs

Hezbollah "Volcano" in Qusayr, Homs

Then, a couple of days ago, the following picture was posted on a pro-Hezbollah Facebook group

The original Facebook post has been deleted, but the contents was reported here.  This is a screengrab taken from the video showing the Syrian National Defence Force launching UMLACAs, but what's interesting is commentators on Facebook claimed that this was a Hezbollah designed weapon, known as the "Volcano" described as "The Pride of Lebanese Industry".  It could be said that the explosive version of the UMLACA is basically a larger version of the IRAM, and a suspected chemical variant of the IRAM shared at least one interesting feature with the chemical version of the UMLACA.  It should be kept in mind these are just claims by commentators on a pro-Hezbollah Facebook page, so claims the weapon is Hezbollah made should be taken with a pinch of salt, and the NDF video showing the UMLACA claims it's a Syrian made weapon.

This leaves many unanswered questions; it's not clear if both the IRAMs and UMLACAs are known as Volcanoes, or if it's an error by the commentators on the pro-Hezbollah Facebook page.  If they are known as Volcanoes, does that suggest the UMLACA could be a more advanced version of the IRAM?  Was Hezbollah involved with the use of IRAMs by the Syrian military, and did that in turn lead to involvement with the development of the chemical UMLACA? Does that mean Hezbollah has access to UMLACAs, potentially their first chemical weapon?  At this stage it's too earlier to know, but it does add a new twist to the tale of IRAMs and UMLACAs in Syria.

You can contact the author on Twitter @brown_moses or by email at brownmoses@gmail.com

DIY Weapons In Syria - Hezbollah Deploys IRAMs In Qusayr

A few weeks ago I was sent a photograph of a unidentified munition recovered by fighters in Qusayr, reportedly fired by government forces

My eye was drawn to the markings, with "M220" possibly referring to part of an BGM-71 TOW, a type of US wire-guided missile, or the M220 propelling cartridge for M889A1/M889A2/M821A2 81mm high explosive mortar bombs.  However, it wasn't clear how either would relate to this munition, so this device remained a mystery.

Thanks to the freelance journalist Josh Wood I now have much more information on these items, including a gallery of photographs, and details of how they were actually used.  Josh told me this about his interview with the opposition fighter who provided the images

This weapon was used by Hezbollah forces in Qusayr.  He described them as 107mm rockets fitted to something with a higher payload, with the 107mm propelling everything. He said the max range on these was about 1 km, but most of the time they were simply fired across the street horizontally at extremely close range.  By his description, one of these could do significant damage to a small house.  He said that these rockets really helped Hezbollah shift the tide in parts of that front-line.

The description of the damage it did to buildings reminded me of something Colonel Aqidi of the Free Syrian Army said in his interview about the situation he encountered in Qusayr

The enemy was applying a scorched earth policy by firing Iranian vacuum bombs, which caused whole building to fall down. 

He may not be referring to these devices, as there was a lot of ordnance being used, but I'd assume he'd know the bombs dropped by the air-force are all Soviet.  So what is this device?

I believe what we have here is what's know as an IRAM, an Improvised Rocket Assisted Mortar/Munition. In it's most basic form it's a barrel of explosives with a rocket motor attached (commonly from 107mm rockets), which allows an oversized payload to be launched a short range.  It's a weapon used extensively in Iraq, as former United States Navy explosives ordnance disposal officer John Ismay told the New York Times

These weapons were solely used by Jaysh al Mahdi (JAM) Special Groups, which were the Shia fighting groups trained/funded/financed/equipped by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps and the Quds Force.
If I’m not mistaken, only one group was really tied to the IRAM, and that was Kataib Hezbollah.

Kataib Hezbollah shouldn't been mistaken for Lebanon's Hezbollah, but they do have some obvious things in common with each other.

As the above New York Times article points out, this isn't the first time IRAMs have been spotted in Syria, with around a dozen videos posted so far.  What is interesting about this IRAM is the design is very different from the others used so far, as appears to have a much larger warhead.

Both types use 107mm rockets, but in the earlier IRAMs the warhead appears to be generally smaller than the rocket, while in the above example it seems larger.  CJ Chivers had this to say on the warhead

The point re: the M220 is not that the warhead originated from either a TOW or a mortar round; that's not especially important, because obviously it is not either. It's that someone may have repurposed a munitions storage case instead of using a large pipe, water tank, small barrel etc for a DIY projectile.

I spoke to John Ismay, and asked him about the design of the IRAM:

I was wondering if this looks like a design you've encountered before?  
The design in the photographs doesn't look like the ones we encountered in Iraq. Those generally used an acetylene tank for a warhead section.  The fuzes were a pyrotechnic time-delay and were generally all of the same design.

The tail section is very different from what we've seen in previous IRAMs, what are your thoughts on it's design?
The tail section shown in the photographs is curious, and probably is one of several reasons this weapon failed to function as designed. The Fadjr-1 is an Iranian copy of the Chinese Type 63 artillery rocket. These rockets have six canted venturi nozzles that impart instantaneous stabilizing spin to the weapon, thus freeing it from needing a rifled launcher. Check this page for some diagrams.

Thus, the added tail section is superfluous, and only adds weight to the tail. I suppose it's possible that the designer thought the addition would better help it fit into a cylindrical launcher, but this is really a cosmetic change at best and an additional destabilizing mod (on an already non-aerodynamic system) at worst.

As John highlights, the rocket used is Iranian in origin, with it's markings visible in this picture

Here we can see the rockets were manufactured in 2007, which is co-incidentally the same date on a cargo of smuggled 107mm rockets from Iran intercepted by the Israelis in 2009.

Possibly also related to these IRAMs is this video, which claims to be leaked from Hezbollah fighters

At the start of the video there's a truck mounted multiple barreled rocket launcher of a type I've not seen before.  The rocket tubes seem to be very large, far larger than any system I've seen mounted on a truck, but possibly the correct size for the above IRAMs.  The video quality is very poor, so it's hard to be certain, but this might be a first look at the system used to launch these IRAMs.

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You can contact the author on Twitter @brown_moses or by email at brownmoses@gmail.com

An Israeli Truck Reportedly Captured From The Syrian Opposition Reappears in Qusayr

Late last month there were a number of reports from Lebanese and Syria television of a truck reportedly captured from opposition forces around Qusayr that was claimed to be Israeli in origin, shown in the below video

The trucks were marked with the initials of the Israeli prison service, as seen below

An Israel Defense Forces spokesman told the Times of Israel that "based on the identification number seen in footage of the vehicle, the jeep had belonged to the now-defunct South Lebanon Army, and had been out of commission for more than a decade," adding the report was "crude propaganda."

Looking through images from the recently captured Qusayr one stood out, captioned "Forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad ride on a truck in Qusair, after the Syrian army took control of the city from rebel fighters, June 5, 2013. Syrian government forces and their Lebanese Hezbollah allies seized control of the border town of Qusair on Wednesday, a severe setback to rebel fighters battling to overthrow Assad."

To me this appeared to be the same type of truck reportedly captured by the Syrian Army back in May, but I then discovered something else.  Here's the number plate on the above photo

Here's the number plate of the truck captured in May

It seems pretty clear both number plates read 669491, so it's seems it's the same vehicle, and again begs the question of whether this truck was actually seized by Hezbollah from the South Lebanon Army and used for propaganda purposes.  This is also important when footage shown on Syrian and Lebanon TV claims to show Israeli weapons supposedly captured in Qusayr.

Related posts
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Reinforcements And A Senior Free Syrian Army Member Arrive In Qusayr
Abu Sakkar Joins Mounting Casualties From The Fighting in Qusayr
Syrian Opposition Fighters (Including Abu Sakkar) Appear In A Video From Central Qusayr

Intercepted Radio Conversations Gives An Insight Into The Fighting In Qusayr

Syrian Activists Claim Al Mayadeen News Tweets FSA Positions To The Syrian Air Force

Brigadier General Salim Idris And Lebanese Cleric Sheikh Ahmad Al-Aseer Take A Trip To Syria

You can contact the author on Twitter @brown_moses or by email at brownmoses@gmail.com

Intercepted Radio Conversations Gives An Insight Into The Fighting In Qusayr

Over the past week a major battle has been taking place in Qusayr, Homs, between Syrian opposition forces, and forces reportedly made up of the Syrian army and Hezbollah fighters from nearby Lebanon.    Various claims and counter claims have been made about the progress of the battle, with channels reporting from the outskirts of the town with pro-government forces, and opposition Youtube channels posting videos from inside the town.

One video posted today claims to be radio communications between government forces in town, and offers some insight into the ongoing battle from the government side

Many thanks to my translator for transcribing the entire conversation into English.  The conversation is among a number of people, with one person apparently attempting to organise several groups, so this just lists what's being said without specific individuals named.  The men on the radio are referring to each other by various nicknames, such as Mazloom 12, Mazloom 13, Murtada, etc.


- I have a broken tank, send the maintenance team to Abu Hasan. O Mazloom, there is a broken tank.
- Kareem, Kareem, I need a stretcher, I have two casualties.
- Alright brother, just wait a second.  Mazloom! Mazloom!
Who is there? Who is calling for me?
- Come near brother as I told you. Join me, can you see where I am?
- Abu Ridda, Michael, there are hundreds of them opposing us. The sniper is firing at me, I am retreating back.
-Abu Ali …. Mazloom.
- Send us an ambulance please.
- Alright.
- Abu Yaser ….. Where are you Abu Ali?
- Abu Hasan …… Slingo.
- Slingo …. We told Mazloom.
- Did you know where I am? Oh man! You were firing at me a while ago.
Abu Ridda ….  Abu Yaser.
I can hear you. Man! Nobody is getting near, nobody is dares!
- Abu Haidar …..
- Carbalaa’
- Mazloom! I need tanks. Send me 23 (mm gun) now!
- Luay …. Abu Hasan. Join me bro! Come here! Where are you? Are you near the cypress trees?
- Bro! Can you see the tanks column? Go there! Join me!
- I am firing at the house one B7 (RPG-7).
- Wait while I locate you.
- Look! I am on the right of the water tank. Can I go forward?
- Where are you now?
- I am on the right of the water tank.
- Hamza ….. Mazloom! Look out! Bring the tanks closer and let’s get to the mosque, move!
- My tank has stopped. Call on Mazloom.
- Mazloom … 13.
- I can hear you bro.
- Abu Hasan, the sniper there is firing at me and my comrades, I can’t get across. Can you call on one of those guys in order to decide what to do?
- I need someone from Mazloom’s group bring the maintenance team. My tank has stopped in the street.
-Manzoom! There is wounded comrade here.
- Kaukab! Let Abu Rhidda tell me where I should go with the ambulance.
- Bro! Those are our comrades. Nobody fires a shot!
Mazloom 12 …. Mazloom 13!
- Can you call from there? Nobody hears me while I am here.
- Nobody has answered. Nobody is answering my calls!
- Abu Rhidda, I will get there under cover of the dushka. Find those two on the road.
- Cover isn’t needed, the road is safe. Come here! Hurry up!
-Turn to the right when coming here, there is an unpaved road, take it. Follow the trail of the tank. I removed the shell out of the canon, but I am not sure if it still works, and I don’t know if I should get near you or not. Where should I fire the shell?
- Fire it a bit to the east, at the houses, fire it low, not high. Fire it where I fired the first one, but if you fire it elsewhere it will hurt us.
- I will fire one there.
- If it is still working, bring it here.
- I can hear you. Where are you?
- The sniper is blocking my road. I am stuck and he doesn’t let me move.
- Tell him where you are and where you want the paramedics to go.
- Michael! Are the wounded with you now? Reply please!
- Slingo, can you find the road that we took?
- We told you many times to send us a vehicle, it’s urgent.
- Where should I send the ambulance, Murtada?
- Ali Hasan, send it to Mujahed if you find him.I am near him.
- I was under constant fire … Put it (aim at) behind the water tank. They are behind the water tank firing at us using B7 (RPG-7).
- Abu Rhidda, I can’t join you though I am not very far away. Oh bro! Our comrades are being killed by snipers. Where is the stretcher?
- I am against you. There are causalities lying on the ground. There are another two here.
- What should we do now?
- Send reinforces here, Abu Hidar is calling.
- Fire two shells at the houses facing you. Also fire a shell to the west. There are two snipers on your right, fire at them.
- Abu Hasan’s tanks to the east are firing at us!
- There is a casualty here, he is wounded in his back.
- There are two wounded there, they are still lying on the ground. Somebody bring them!
- It’s batteries are catching fire!
- I will send the maintenance team. Just wait a minute.
- Are all those tanks belong to us or just we own only one?
- There are eight comrades wounded. Go and recover them quickly. They were ambushed there.
- Abu Ali, come here quickly with the tank!
- He was wounded in his leg and I was badly wounded.
- Nobody fires! All Mazloom’s men retreat now!
- Guys! There are a lot of casualties there.
- Abu Hasan, I will send you more troops near the props, just send me a car

It's of course very difficult to authenticate radio conversations like this, but several people who have listened to it who are familiar with regional accents claim these are all Lebanese accents, so this might actually be radio communications between Hezbollah fighters in the area.

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Brigadier General Salim Idris And Lebanese Cleric Sheikh Ahmad Al-Aseer Take A Trip To Syria

You can contact the author on Twitter @brown_moses or by email at brownmoses@gmail.com

Brigadier General Salim Idris And Lebanese Cleric Sheikh Ahmad Al-Aseer Take A Trip To Syria

In the last 24 hours there's been some interesting images of various important figures taking field trips to Syria which I think are worth highlighting.  First Shami Witness highlighted this photograph reportedly showing senior opposition commanders visiting the front-lines at Mengh air base, the scene of a major siege

Thanks to Mads Dahl for videos of the trip

Here we see:
- Colonel Abdel Jabbar Aqidi, former Chief of the Military Council of Aleppo and current armament committee member.
- Brigadier General Salim Idris, Commander-in-chief of the Supreme Military Council.
- Captain Ahmed Ghazali of the Northern Storm Brigade, famed for liberating Azaz.
- Mohammad Talas, command of Liwa Suqour Shuhada

It's extremely interesting to see these figures together, especially as Brigadier General Salim Idris was interviewed in Turkey a week ago, so would have traveled all the way to Mengh air base to visit the front-lines.  It does raise the question of the purpose of the visit, could this be a sign of a major offensive about to take place, or just a visit to boost morale?

Another interesting figure who has reportedly turned up in Syria in recent days is Lebanese Sunni Muslim cleric, Sheikh Ahmad Al-Aseer, reportedly in Qusayr, Homs

Sheikh Ahmad Al-Aseer is a very outspoken figure, and has heavily criticised Hezbollah and their support of the Syrian government during the conflict.  This apparent appearance in Syria is very interesting when you consider his recent call to Jihad, telling his followers to join the Syrian opposition to fight against the Syrian government, and that the area he's been reportedly filmed in, Qusayr, Homs, has reportedly been the scene of fighting between the opposition and Hezbollah members inside Syria.


You can contact the author on Twitter @brown_moses or by email at brownmoses@gmail.com

Syrian Activists Claim Al Mayadeen News Tweets FSA Positions To The Syrian Air Force

The Syrian opposition activist THE_47th, who has reliably predicted major defections and other key events spotted a very unusual Tweet on the Al Mayadeen News Twitter account

 The Tweet was immediately deleted, but not before one of his followers took a screenshot.  It apparently reads "There's a water tank above, I just want them to tell the plane about it so he/they [rebels] won't hit it. They've got anti-aircraft too.  Maskaneh, Aleppo countryside".  THE_47th and other opposition activists claim this is evidence that Al Mayadeen journalists are providing details of the FSA positions to the Syrian Air Force, with the Al Mayadeen network putting out a Tweet claiming they were hacked, a claim THE_47th found unconvincing, as shown below

This seems to imply the reported on the ground was trying to send a private message, and accidentally Tweeted it on the main Al Mayadeen Twitter account, which he must have access to. 

France 24 and other organisations have reported Al Mayadeen's political ties to Syria, Iran, and Hezbollah, and pro-opposition activists have already reacted angrily to the above incident, saying Al Mayadeen reporters should leave the country.

Update August 23rd Ali Hashem, Chief Correspondent of Al Mayadeen news, has Tweeted the following

the account was hacked, and we as reporters have no access to it
our reporter in #Aleppo isn't active on twitter neither does she have an account on it

Update August 23rd More from Ali Hashem

Regarding what is circulating about @Almayadeennews account giving tips online, this is not true our account was hacked
Previously Reuters twitter account was hacked, so this is not the first time such incident takes place http://mobile.reuters.com/article/idUSBRE8721B420120806?irpc=932 …
The most important part is that our reporter is in the city of #Aleppo not the country side Our reporters have no access to the main twitter account that is managed from Beirut

You can contact the author on Twitter @brown_moses or by email at brownmoses@gmail.com