Syrian opposition forces seize two BM-30 Smerch from Assad’s regime
5 December, 2024 Abandoned BM-30 Smerch. Source: Clash Report. Syrian opposition forces have seized two launchers and one transport-loading vehicle of the BM-30 Smerch multiple-launch rocket system.
The Clash Report monitoring project and the Middle East in Ukrainian Telegram channel published the videos of the equipment. One 9A52-2 launcher was captured in the al-Safira village, located southeast of Aleppo. This combat vehicle was damaged, in particular, the driver's cab was damaged, and the front wheel was broken.
It is also noticeable that there are eight rockets in the tubes.
Very valuable: Syrian opposition seizes Assad regime's 300mm BM-30 Smerch MLRS in Al-Safira, Aleppo countryside. Range:
Minimum: 20 km
Maximum: 90 km (up to 120 km with advanced variants) pic.twitter.com/OcUjSGJL5n -- Clash Report (@clashreport) December 4, 2024
The other 9A52-2, along with the 9T234-2 transport and loading vehicle, were abandoned by Assad's forces in the village of Hanaser, which is located outside the city of al-Safira.
Map of the Aleppo city area.
The cities of al-Safira and Khanaser are highlighted. Source: syria.liveuamap.com
The poor quality of the video makes it impossible to assess the condition of combat vehicles and the availability of ammunition.
1 - 9T234-2, 2 - 9A52-2 launcher. Source: Middle East in Ukrainian
It is worth noting that BM-30 Smerch appeared in service with the Syrian Arab Republic only after the start of the civil war.
It is known that a small number of Smerchs were transferred to the Assad regime from Russian arsenals. The first evidence of using these MLRS in the form of fragments of 9M55K missiles was found in the settlements of Kfar Zita and Al-Tah north of Hama in early 2014.
Trophies of the Syrian opposition
Militarnyi recently reported that Syrian rebels captured the latest Russian 48Ya6-K1 Podlet-K1 radar. The station was discovered during the battle for the city of Hama, which is under the control of Assad's forces.
The radar is designed to work with Russian S-400 and S-300PMU-2 air defense systems.
Russian 48Ya6-K1 Podlet-K1 radar, captured by Syrian rebels on the outskirts of Hama. December 2024, Syria. Source: Status-6
On December 3, it was reported that opposition forces had captured a rare SAV combat vehicle from the Syrian Armed Forces, the design of which was "borrowed" from a Ukrainian armored vehicle.
Almost nothing is known about the Syrian SAV, including its manufacturer and production numbers.
Still, their very rare appearance in photo and video materials suggests that the Assad regime has few of them in service.