Frequently in my trawls through social media and open source information I come across images where the group showing them is making one claim, but the actual facts are far more interesting. For example, with the Croatian weapons story, state media was describing the weapons as Israeli weapons, completely over-looking the real significance of the weapons. Along that same vein, the following picture was sent to me today by @Kgthetweet
This picture had reportedly been doing the rounds in Jihadist circles, claiming to show NATO munitions captured by ISIS forces. This story was then picked up by pro-Assad groups, that added an bit of extra spin to the story, and adding their own branding
There's actually two interesting things about this picture. First of all, it actually shows Iranian munitions, not NATO munitions, examples of which I've detailed in this blog post. From the above picture we can see the stencilling on the box and mortar matches other examples of Iranian munitions, as shown below
We can also make out in the "NATO" photo the fuze type, AZ111A2, produced by the Iranian Defense Industries Organisation. Once listed on their website, the links have now been removed.
The other thing is the manufacturing date, that can be seen clearly on the mortar, and somewhat less clearly on the crate. These mortars were manufactured in 2013, during the conflict, and after it was reported Iran had already violated UN sanctions against Iran in 2012.
This goes to show, sometimes you can be looking so hard for something that what's actually there completely passes you by.
Earlier this week I wrote about two photographs I had been sent by a journalist working in Syria who had been hunting for the gas grenades linked to two alleged chemical weapon attacks in Sheikh Maqsoud, Aleppo, and Saraqeb, Idlib. I've now spoken to the journalist, Alfred Hackensberger, who recently wrote about his investigation in Syria for Die Welt, and provided me with more details of his investigation. I began by asking which areas of Syria he visited
Alfred Hackensberger - We (my photographer Victor Breiner and I) went to Aleppo and visited the area around the city, including some front lines, like Kafra Hamra (close to the Shia villages of Nuba and Zahra) and Assafireh, where rebels were besieging a military complex with chemical and ammunition materials inside.
When we were driving around meeting rebels and their commanders we showed them a picture of the grenade used in alleged chemical attacks. At beginning, nobody recognized them and we thought we are at a dead end. But later, we found two rebels at front line position in Assafireh who immediately recognized them. They were sure of seeing them on rebels, but didn't remember if the were from Liwa Tawhid or al-Nusra. But anyway, they said this were smoke grenades, not chemical grenades. Later in Aleppo we found two more men who said same thing.
At the al-Nusra Base fighters recognised the grenade immediately, and showed grenades of same type or series. They said: "All are smoke grenades, and we got them from Syrian Army depots." Again, they pointed out that their grenades are not "chemical weapon" grenades. Regarding whether or not they used them in combat, they didn't mention, or didn't want to mention anything.
To my understanding, nobody we were talking to was aware that these kind of grenades were used in the alleged chemical attacks in Saraqeb or Sheikh Maqsoud. We had to explain to them, that these ones were used. I mean they really didn't know anything about them.
After their statement that they got them from Syrian Army, we were looking for former officers, soldiers who might recognise them. It took a couple of days asking and, again, showing around the picture of the grenade to former soldiers till we found one who had seen it.
It was a rebel fighter, who goes back and forth to the Turkish border to organise weapon transports. He said, that he saw these grenades (the original one from Saraqeb and Maqsoud) during his military service over one year ago in Daraa (before he defected). An elite force, supposedly from the 4th Division, was training with these grenades. His officer told him that the grenades were delivered by Iran and would contain, beside smoke, a certain nerve relaxant, to calm protesters down. The former soldier also said that these grenades were not used at that time.
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Some very interesting details there, especially when you consider these are the only munitions that appear to be linked to the Saraqeb attack, which I've examined in great detail here.
In the coming days I'll be posting a series of interviews from a number of chemical weapon experts, discussing the finer points of sarin, the attack in Saraqeb, where the US claims sarin was used, and the attack in Khan al-Assal, where Russia claims sarin was used.
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.
This video was filmed at a position captured from the Syrian military in the last few days, and at 80 seconds into the video we have a very clear shot of the markings on an munitions crate
This case contained/contains two 120mm mortar bombs, manufactured in 2012, and with AZ111A2 fuzes. AZ111A2 fuzes are produced by the Iranian Defense Industries Organisation, described on their website as
one of the main affiliated subsidiaries of Ministry of Defense and Support of Armed Forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran as a completely state-owned organization is presenting its d uties and relative missions in the field of production and supply for the meeting of requirements of the Armed Forces of I.R. of Iran and also export of products, engineering and technical services.
AZ111A2 fuzes can be found here on their website, along with a full spec sheet, confirming they are produce for a variety of HE mortar bombs, including the 120mm size.
It's interesting to note that a 2009 shipment of sanction busting arms from Iran intercepted by Israel carried mortar rounds with the AZ111A2 (as well as the 107mm rockets), and the markings on the case are virtually the same format as seen in the above video
One thing this demonstrates how much crucial information can be gathered from the sides of wooden boxes, and why it pays to look out for all the little details in videos from Syria.
In the past week Iran has been accused of violating a UN Security Council ban on weapons exports, including sending arms to Syria
The new report, submitted by a panel of sanctions-monitoring experts to the Security Council's Iran sanctions committee, said the panel investigated three large illegal shipments of Iranian weapons over the past year.
"Iran has continued to defy the international community through illegal arms shipments," it stated. "Two of these cases involved (Syria), as were the majority of cases inspected by the Panel during its previous mandate, underscoring that Syria continues to be the central party to illicit Iranian arms transfers."
The following video from Agraba, Damascus, shows a very rare example of evidence that supports those accusations
Here we have a unexploded 107mm rocket, typically launched by Type-63 multiple rocket launchers, a system used widely by both sides in the conflict. It's claimed in the video that this has been fired by government forces, and appears to be fully intact.
107mm rockets are manufactured in a number of countries, but the markings on this example strongly indicate it was manufactured in Iran. First here's reference images of the 107mm rocket manufactured by China and Iran
Note the colouring of the rocket, as well as the marking. Here's the rocket from the video
It's very clear the rocket in the video is a perfect match for the Iranian examples, and what's extremely interesting is the date of manufacture, which can be clearly seen in this screenshot
Now, unless the reports of an Iranian time machine are true, it appears what we have here is an Iranian rocket manufactured in 2012, during the Syrian conflict, and the arms embargo, that has managed to find it's way into Damascus. With at 10km range it seems unlikely these rockets have flown from Iran to Syria under their own power, so this is very strong evidence that Iran has been arming Syria during the conflict, despite UN sanctions.
The following video posted on an activist channel for Talbiseh, Homs shows a very unusual projectile previously unseen in the conflict
The projectile belongs to an American M47 Dragon, a wire-guided anti-tank missile in service with the US military until 2001. A diagram of the projectile is shown below (source)
The video provides a close up of the markings on the projectile which provides additional information
"Octol" refers to the type of explosive used, more details of which are here. M225 is the type of warhead, and HE refers to high explosive. What's interesting is there's also a P/N reference, which means that with the right reference material it would be possible to track it down to it's original source. With a history of use in Iran, Iraq, Israel, and Jordan, as well as the US, it leaves the question of the source wide open, but hopefully the P/N reference will make tracking the origin much more straight-forward.
During the Syrian conflict it has been oftenclaimed that members of the Iranian military and security forces are inside Syria, assisting the Assad government against the opposition. Videos have been posted in the past of men the opposition claim to be members of the Iranian military or security forces, but, as of yet, there has been no solid proof.
This video filmed in Salahedin, Aleppo shows members of the armed opposition claiming to have an ID card from a Iranian officer they've killed
The card clearly states it's for the Fajr International Cultural and Sports Tournament, which seems to cover a number of competitive events taking place in Iran on a regular basis with international competitors, so clearly this is not a military ID.
The ID card is also for a Syrian citizen, Ali Ibrahim, not an Iranian citizen, which is acknowledge by the group who killed him on the Facebook page, but they go on to claim this is proof he took a martial arts training course in Iran. However, his position is described as "player", so it seems far more likely he competed in an international event in Iran, and then returned to Syria.
This hasn't stopped the video from being reposted on Youtube with the description "Syria Freedom Fighters Show Iran Passport of Iranian Army Officer Battle Casualty", and being spread around social media sites claiming to show proof of Iranians in Syria. As always anyone watching videos from Syria should always think twice about unquestionably accepting claims about the content of a video or photograph, and always try to find the original source of a video rather than relying on whatever spin the person reposting the video puts on it.
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
At the time, NBC News space analyst James Oberg said he had indications that the Topol's "third-stage spin is a 'feature,' not a malfunction, and may be associated with guidance, or decoy deploy, or enhancing hardness against U.S. boost-phase antimissile weapons."
The Strategic Missile Forces of the Russian Federation have conducted another successful test of the “Topol” Intercontinental Ballistic Missile, this time from the firing ground at "Kapustin Yar" in Astrakhan in Southern Russia.
The exercise saw the missile accurately hit its target on the firing range "Sary-Shagan" in Kazakhstan.
The test was conducted to confirm the stability of the basic performance characteristics of this class of missile reported the Ministry of Defense.
The ministry representatives added that all of the objectives of the test launch were met in full. In particular, it was possible to obtain information that will be used in the future to develop the means to overcome missile defense systems.
UPDATE 2 - It seems like the path of the missile started in southwest Russia, and headed southwest towards Israel and Jodran, with reports of it being spotted in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Iran, Turkey, Syria, Israel and Jordan. It seems likely it would have been spotted in northern Iraq as well, but no reports of that as yet. It was reported in January that Russia would be testing "70 new missile systems" in 2012 at the Kapustin Yar Missile Test Range in southwest Russia.
Russia's Defense Ministry says the Russian army successfully test-fired an intercontinental ballistic missile.
The Topol missile was fired at 9:39 Moscow time, according to a statement published by the Novosti news agency. (Ynet)
Around 7pm BST reports started to come in from Syria that helicopters had started spraying white smoke/chemicals across cities in Syria, with activists posting videos from across Syria:
Then to add to the confusion Israelis began to call in UFO sightings
Hundreds of Israelis nationwide flooded police hotlines Thursday evening with reports about seeing an unidentified flying object in the nation's skies.
A prominent Israeli astronomer said the object flew above Lebanese territory and is not a meteor. The UFO was also clearly visible in Palestinian territories. A similar sighting in Norway three years ago turned out to be a failed missile test.
This video shows the above mentioned sighting over Norway
This video of tonight's event also shows a spiraling pattern at around 24 seconds in
So it seems like it could be a missile test. It's also interesting to note it's been reported as being spotted far and wide, with this video apparently from Azerbaijan:
And the same spiral pattern filmed in Armenia:
And another from Armenia
If you've spotted any other videos from countries around that region let me know on Twitter @brown_moses
