Earlier this week, the Syrian opposition launched an offensive on the city of Aleppo and other territories under the control of the government forces of Bashar al-Assad, marking the first outbreak of large-scale hostilities in Syria in recent years.
Previously, Defense Express analyzed the constitution and numbers of russian forces backing the Assad's regime, now we can see some of this equipment abandoned and taken by the HTS militants.
Read more: Offensive on Aleppo: What Are the Assad Regime's and russian Forces in Syria Fighting the Rebels
Closely monitoring the russian losses in Syria was the Defense Intelligence of Ukraine. A report issued by this agency says, in just three days of the offensive operation launched by the Syrian opposition, the russian contingent has already suffered significant losses, prompting the Kremlin to dismiss the commander of the russian deployment in the Syrian Arab Republic, General Sergey Kisel, and appoint Alexander Chayko in his place, who used to command russian troops in Syria in 2017–2019.
The scale of russian and pro-government forces' disorientation is clearly visible in photos and videos spreading on social media where Syrian rebels boast their trophies, some of which are extremely rare. So far the most notable example is the Pantsir-S1 air defense (missile & gun) system of russian production in working order. For a good measure of how big of a catch it is: in all 2.5 years of intense warfare in Ukraine, only two Pantsir-S1 systems were visually confirmed to be captured by Ukrainians.
Another noteworthy weapon captured is the BM-27 Uragan multiple launch rocket system, fully loaded with ammunition, indicating just how hastily Bashar Assad's pro-government troops abandoned their possessions.
In some other videos, you can see helicopters, L-39 aircraft (approximately three to five units), and aerial bombs. The weapons were captured at the Kuweires Air Base.
The amount of hardware which Syrian rebels captured in the last three days, is mind-boggling. Uragan MLRS, Pantsir air defense and even an entire L-39 light fighter. And there are dozens of more sites like this. pic.twitter.com/V2vVfdnCY1— (((Tendar))) (@Tendar) December 1, 2024
Just recently, footage of the captured Strela-10 surface-to-air missile system in the hands of the Syrian opposition appeared as well.
Besides russian products, we can also see iranian weapons, such as the Ababil-3 unmanned aerial vehicle.
In addition, the rebels showed other weapons they captured — tanks, armored personnel carriers, howitzers, etc.
Read more: russia Replaces Military Leadership Amid Setbacks in Syria
