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HOME / 2019 / DECEMBER / SECRET PLANS SHOW HOW

TURKEY ARMED, TRAINED AND EQUIPPED SYRIAN REBELS

Secret plans show how

Turkey armed, trained
and equipped Syrian
rebels
! December 2, 2019 Abdullah Bozkurt

A photo showing Turkish military training activity.

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Abdullah Bozkurt

Turkey planned in July 2016 to enlist 4,000

Syrians on a monthly payroll of $3.8 million to
fight as a proxy in the civil war against the
Bashar al-Assad government as well as provide
ammunition and equipment worth nearly $200
million, classified documents have revealed.

According to the documents, obtained by Nordic

Monitor, Turkey’s National Intelligence
Organization (MIT) coordinated the enlisting of
rebels while the Turkish military handled the
training, arming and equipping of the fighters.
The documents suggest the original plan,
dra!ed in November 2015, was updated in the
summer of 2016.

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The documents detail the arms that would be

provided to the rebels, whose initial number
was set at 4,000, with another 4,000 to later be
added to the force. The arms included 3,440 AK-
47 rifles. 280 PKMS machine guns, 280 RPG-7
rocket-propelled grenade launchers, 160 M2
Browning 12.7mm machine guns, 12 14.5 mm
KPV heavy machine guns, 360 Kanas (Dragunov
SVD) sniper rifles, 55 various calibre mortar
bombs, four anti-tank TOW missiles and four
SPG-9 Kopye (Spear) 73 millimeter calibre
recoilless guns and 270 GTT recoilless rifles
(57mm, 75mm, 106mm).

The arms were estimated to be worth $4.4

million at market value. Furthermore, $155.1
million in ammunition was also planned to be
delivered to the rebels, according to the
documents.

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The Turkish military was to supply $37.2 million

in military and technical equipment such as
mine detectors, night vision goggles, CB radios,
armored cars, generators, heavy construction
equipment, boots and military fatigues. The
total cost came to nearly $200 million at market
prices, although the documents also listed the
o"icial purchase price list at a lower cost as
indicated in the Logistics Information System
(LBS).

The Turkish military asked the US to cover some

of the costs and provide arms, ammunition and
equipment from a stockpile maintained at
Incirlik Airbase in the southeastern province of
Adana.

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The list shows that some of the Russian arms

and ammunition requested by the rebels were
not located in Turkish or US stockpiles. It
included tank mortars used on T-55 T-62 and T-
72 tanks seized from Syrian government forces,
anti-tank and anti-personnel mines, and various
rockets such as those for the Grad launcher. The
note next to the list states that their
procurement would be sought from local
suppliers.

Each fighter would receive $450 on a monthly

basis and also be provided with food and fuel,
according to the plans. The 4,000-strong force
was to be divided into four groups of 1,000
fighters each. Each group would be composed of
three units (400, 300 and 300), and every unit
was to have three to four companies of 100
fighters each. Companies were further divided
into small teams with each having its own
commander, two deputy commanders, a
communications specialist, a translator and
fighters.

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The Turkish plan appears to have been

coordinated with US o"icials. The US had
already spent $500 million in 2015 to train and
equip rebels to establish a 5,000-strong rebel
force during the Obama administration, but the
plan was shut down in October 2015 a!er most
fighters either deserted and joined radical
groups including the Islamic State in Iraq and
Syria (ISIS) or were captured by rival factions.
The Pentagon continued the program with some
adjustments in 2016, only to cancel it in 2017 on
the order of President Donald Trump. Since
then, Turkey has continued to train, arm and
equip rebels on its own, even expanding its
program.

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About the author

Abdullah Bozkurt
abdullah.bozkurt@yahoo.com
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