Quiet Side Of The War On Isil: “euphrates Shield”, ISIS captured two Leopards IIs

[Warhawk]

Recent lone wolf Terrorist Attack a few days ago seems to show the porous border between Turkey and Syria. What seems to be somewhat lacking in coverage is the current land action the Turks are in. Hence their involvement of the recent Cease Fire,..sans ISIL and a few other Terrorist Groups.

During a Turkish troops offensive near Al-Bab in Syria on the 22nd December 2016, ISIS militants not only repelled the attack but also captured Leopard-2A4 main battle tanks.

Clashes between Turkish-backed Syrian rebels and Islamic State militants intensified around the northern Syrian town of al-Bab on Wednesday, killing 14 Turkish soldiers and 138 jihadists, the army said.

The fighting, in which 33 Turkish soldiers were also wounded, is some of the deadliest yet in Turkey’s nearly four-month-old “Euphrates Shield” operation in northern Syria.

ISIS propagandists have released pictures of the strikes on Turkish Leopard-2 main battle tanks in Syria.

ISIS has targeted two Turkish Leopard 2A4s near Syria’s northern city of Al-Bab, making it the third anti-tank guided missile (ATGM) strike on Turkish Leopards in two days.

Military experts believe that the tanks were hit with the Soviet-produced Fagot or Konkurs anti-tank guided missile system.

Islamic State had earlier destroyed 3 Turkish Army T-155 Fırtına self-propelled howitzer near Karkamis town of Gaziantep.

The T-155 Firtina self-propelled 155mm howitzer which is a modified variant of the Korean K9 Thunder, once on the short list for Land 17 for the Australian Army. It uses license-built subsystems of the K9 such as the gun system and loading mechanism.

One wonders why so close to the action or border,...given their range, and stated fact that they were sited well in Turkey,. which raises another issue,... an attack on a NATO Country, would that not invoke a joint NATO retaliatory action by all NATO Alliance Members??????

Odd stuff. :blink:

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[Martin Edwards]

Call me a sceptic but while Turkey is a member of NATO it is not a member of the European Union. Most of the neighbouring NATO countries are members of the EU.
Now ask yourself which is the more powerful alliance, the military or the political.
Turkey has become a rouge nation, one the EU has had a gutful of.

[Warhawk]

Amen to that.

Not many people know that,....

I wonder, from a US prospective,..and ours at least,......with friendly thawing relationship with Russia, failed coup ....how does that affect cyber security,..IE F-35As that are on order, and their E-7A's????

Let alone worrying about it becoming a rogue Islamic failed state

Sigh,....lets see how we can trump all of these issues over the next few years,..excuse pun.

Gordy