Ok. I need a Russian speaker to unwrap this one for me. Svetek found the above pic with the caption Iranians are operating US M1's in Iraq here. What I would like help with is tracking down the face book page that is posting this stuff to see how reliable they are.
If this is true then our Iraq/Syria policy is even more jacked up than I believe it to be.
Solomon,
ReplyDeleteThe flag on that M1 belongs to an Iranian Shia militia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kata%27ib_Hezbollah
Also see: http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2014/09/us_supported_hezboll.php
i don't know the Iranian military. NOT AT ALL! so what is the Iranian Shia militia? are they officially associated with the Iranian govt? are they a splinter group that does their dirty work? what is the deal with those guys?
DeleteSolomon ,Mr.T sent you the link , and if you have problems with Russian sites just use auto translate works for me.But it works better with google chrome than with Mozilla
DeleteHezbollah its a proxy arm of the iranian government (there is a lot of debate about their degree of independence, but the fact they are bleeding in syria and irak implies to me they are very dependent on Teheran) its the best trained and equiped terrorist organization in the middle east, they have a huge support network in many parts of the world: Asia, Europe and Latin America (hezbollah operatives have been detained in Mexico) their core of "elite troops" are full time soldiers trained by the Iranian revolutionary guard with a decent combat record on its back, its safe to say they are more dangerous than ISIS. If that M1A1 its being driven by hezbollah pilots, then we can safely say that the Iraqi government is a puppet of Iran, a hostile government, and any tech you send to the iraqis its going to be torn apart bolt by bolt by the Iranians. I "love" the "smart" diplomacy of barry and your democrats, thank God 2016 is not that far. If you want some good information (Its pre ISIS, 2011 or 2012 I think) on hezbollah check this essay, its in spanish, but it was part of the spanish government security notebook. http://www.ugr.es/~jjordan/publicaciones/gruposradicales.pdf
DeleteSpoils of war... this is how it's end when you give "advance" weapon to monkey paper ally. Who da fuck had that bright idea at first place to send M1's to Iraqis?
ReplyDeleteBtw: some pics stop showing on blog site, including the main one, something wrong on provider sol' or it's just on my end?
Deleteit looks fine to me. what browser are you using? i use Chrome but i'll check a few of the other popular ones too. let me know.
DeleteAlso Chrome, but some pics today are not show up and only I have a round gray sight. Let us check something... this is the one of pic I have only with that gray sign what do you see if you open it?
Deletehttp://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WqYaGx24Jo8/VLuePR2f97I/AAAAAAABFQU/J5yufk0kfQ0/s1600/10896998_1048058308554734_7777304450404996132_n.jpg
i see the wz112. what extensions are you running?
DeleteYep. Only seeing the gray circle with the minus sign inside for all of your site's images. You using a photo site to store your pics? It might be down.
DeleteWell, non-story images. The tank pic for this post can be seen just fine.
DeleteYep the same thing like SandWyrm said, I can see tank but everything else just like he said.
DeleteAnd they back, I can see every pic now... probably some provider problem.
Deletenope it was me. i was playing with my google photo account (which is where my photos are linked to) and in trying to speed up my webpage i took some of my more than 50,000 pics from shared to private. that jacked everything up. the problem is that the way google scores things my site speed is going to go down.
Deletei gotta get this solved or load times are going to be as long as winter in the ice age.
The enemy of your enemy.... etc.. etc...
DeleteBut frankly, 2/3's of the power of the M1 is the crew, tactics , support and such... I am not that worried about one or two in potential enemy hands.
They are also old enough for everyone who really wants to know to know the specs, strengths and weaknesses.
The Chinese having hacked F35 technical records is a much bigger problem.
Is it not possible that it was captured from either ISIS or an abandoned Iraqi base. Either way I would of thought it would be in Tehran getting taken to pieces rather than using it.
ReplyDeleteWhat do you want to know, sir?
ReplyDeleteGoogle translation with my correction:
@Iranian Shiite militias who fights against ISIS in Iraq got American weapon. Reported hundreds of US armored vehicles and tanks were sent to pro-Iranian troops under the command of Iranian soldiers@
On one Russian half-closed military forum on authority comrade said it is a Hesbollah flag (one of variant) on the tank. I compared Hesbollah flag I know with the flag on the tank. At my take we can talk about similarity here.
Bthw: I’ve already posted this photo here several about a week ago.
300 gallons of fuel per day. Idle time (what most tanks do) 8 hours vs. 40 or more for a normal tank (example Leopard II). Many other issues with daily maintenance (hours per day vs. minutes per day with a normal tank). And a bunch of other logistics nightmares. They may have the tanks. Being able to use them as a useful day-to-day weapon? Different story.Biggest effect in enemy hands? Propaganda use. Effective too for those that are not read up on M-1 systems and logistics.
ReplyDeleteModern M1A1s have APUs which negate the need to run the turbine to produce electricity in order to have "idle" time.
DeleteBut you already knew that.
Not just about "electricity" but...you already knew that.
DeleteI was an M1 crewman so I can say from 1st hand exp, you are FOS.
DeleteOfftopic:
ReplyDeleteReportedly NATO-standard weapon, taken by rebels in the Donetsk airport
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/B7pxWEhCUAAHFD5.jpg
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/B7pxWLwCEAAMm8s.jpg
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/B7pxWKKCUAAeAoc.jpg
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/B7pxWIcCYAAVE7Y.jpg
Zbroyar of Ukraine manufactures M4 and M16 clones so these might not be from some outside source.
DeleteMay be but I've found nothing similar in military shape on their official site
Deletehttp://www.zbroyar.com.ua/rifles.php
Those happen to exactly match the equipment that ruskies managed to snatch in Georgia back in August 2008. Look it up - yet another propaganda injection.
DeleteConsidering that Iraq military is crap from the brass down , Iranian paramilitarys are are probably much better and operatives Iran is sending in to action are most likely some of the best they have .Iraqis on the other hand promoted people to generals and officer just on family connections.
ReplyDeleteOfftopic:
ReplyDeleteInfo from one rebels reliable at my take:
@Preventing all kinds of insinuations tell from the scene, then he saw himself:
1.We keep Putilov’s bridge adjacent area! Was a breakthrough 5 Ukrainians’ tanks with armored personnel carriers and infantry through the outskirts of Spartacus (where brigade "East" look at I don’t know) to the checkpoint at the bridge, went to the rear of the positions of our tanks which were filled up the ammo. All 3 our tanks as the result are lost, but at the place was our group, performing another assignment, but they focused on incoming Ukrainians. And they with guys from "Somalia"-brigade, got "kicked" out 3 Ukrainian tanks (with graffiti "Wolves") http://a.disquscdn.com/uploads/mediaembed/images/1639/2347/original.jpg?w=800&h
Sort of exchange itself: 3 our tanks for 3 enemy’s. As the result we have one heavy wounded soldier (hold fast," Cat "!);
2. It is fighting on the Spartacus (an area of the Donetsk city), we have flanks strengthened and mange our work. Ukrainian’s diversion groups were notice in the city, some of them were neutralized, the details of course will not be on the air, because our Ministry of Government security works. In such circumstances the Donetsk’s residents beware to inform us if they saw anything suspicious.
3. I give my special thanks to the commandant's office of Donetsk guys who come to the breakthrough in the forefront, covered "Somalia"-brigade tanks and managed a very good work! Well done, “rearward rats”!
4. One span of the bridge collapsed under it appliances and cars are burning. Our bridge collapsed.
5. I met on the bridge commander “Motorola” – he is alive and well, hard foul language as usual)))))))@
https://pp.vk.me/c540102/v540102824/342a7/MMTUtw6Wwfg.jpg
Photo of the collapsed bridge.
PS from Info-infanterie: It looks like Ukrainians got steel balls from the storage and begin to manage assault operations instead “Shield Wall” tactic. Frontal attack at the Donetsk outskirts – it was brave, no doubt.
I don't get one thing... Ukrainians did indeed punch in the seppos face with a solid hit, they drop on them an hell of fire and retake the terminal. Not whole as I understand but they are upper hand in that fight. But they did that using a massive fire support but only a small units go to fight, couple of tanks with infantry support here and there... but that's all. They have a much more larger forces there, much more... they should grab the initiative and roll over seppos, they have the force to do this without too much problem. But they don't do this and that I don't get. They recapture most of the lost positions and even recapture the 179,5 Hill near Krymske, seppos try some skirmish near Mariupol but nothing serious. Seppos use residential areas as shields and fire from there, Ukrainians response but in much less power on that, looks like they try not to fire in blocks... sucks to be Ukrainians in that situation. Most of the fighting is around Gorlowka, both sides really put a shit tons of ammo in that area.
DeleteAbout tanks from under the blow up bridge, it look like situation is complicated... no clear information who tanks where that. From the beginning the most possible were Ukrainians tanks, but there more and more doubts about that, some say that it was a seppos tanks that hide from Ukrainian artillery strikes and or they were covered by salvo or someone panicked and blow up the bridge. Or even they were hit by Ukrainian tanks there... it's unclear by now who is who there.
Delete@But they don't do this and that I don't get. @
DeleteJust the next argument for my theory, that Donetsk airport fight – is a fake agenda for PR or/and diversion of the mind.
You may be right, if the seppos would attack, as you mention area of Debalcewo. Ukrainians are fortified in that place pretty solid and it's look like they understand the situation and danger of being encircle. Maybe this is as you say a diversion, to pull out seppos units towards airport where Ukrainians can roll them down with heavy artillery strikes. The seppos so many times try to capture that place that it is like hitting the brick wall with face to break it.
DeleteWith that level of fire exchange seppos will need a lot more "White convoys" with ammunition as they use a shit tons of it.
Btw: info' that bridge that was blow up/destroyed it is the only straight road from city to airport area. Now the seppos will need to or some how rebuild it and I doubt they can do this or take longer route that will open them for additional artillery strikes. For now they are almost unable to send there or retreat the possible heavy equipment... for a tactic point of view, destruction of that bridge is a win of Ukrainians, no mater who or how blow it up.
Delete@that bridge that was blow up/destroyed it is the only straight road from city to airport area.@
DeleteRebels say “no”. The map shows the same.
@for a tactic point of view, destruction of that bridge is a win of Ukrainians, no mater who or how blow it up.@
May be, we should know real tactic circumstances for this. It looks like rebels use ruins of the terminals as cover for infantry (as well as Ukrainians) and deploy artillery in other places. But I don’t know rebels loose or not possibility to reach the terminals after the bridge was destroyed.
This is just some Iranian shia militia of volunteers, who are all infantry wannabes, taking a selfie with an Iraqi M1 NOT Iranians 'operating' an M1
ReplyDeleteBloomberg article with this same picture.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.bloombergview.com/articles/2015-01-08/iranbacked-militias-are-getting-us-weapons-in-iraq
The flags look the same as these guys......"Large column of Safir jeeps operated by Hezbollah of Iraq with mounted Fajr-1 (107mm) twelve-tube rocket launchers spotted toward Al-Anbar. The jeeps are part of a deal between Iran and Iraq, and are distributed to national defence militias by the central government. Images dated January, 2015."
ReplyDeletehttps://www.facebook.com/iranmilitaryvlog/photos/pcb.707500736014760/707495506015283/?type=1&theater
I'm pretty sure Iran military would like to get their hands on some M1s. Let's not forget that they still have managed to operate F14s after all these years and they are bound to use some M1 technology and reverse engineer it. Let's not forget that our Chinese friends probably wouldn't mind getting a few to test either.....
That's about all I could find on the Iran fan boy sites.
Rather than giving these abrams to the iraqis who promptly lost them again to ISIS, it is better to give them to Shia Militia / Iranian who could use this more effectively..
ReplyDeleteafter all , this is an older model of M1 , and even if iran took one home , what can they do with it ? it's not like M1 an advanced technology like RQ-170 which the iranian easily detect and hack.. The only reason to fear M1 falling into Iran R&D is their meticulous study of M1's weak points like how they studied merkava's weakness..
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ReplyDeleteJust to make things simple: you got a good translation from info-infanterie above, so won't add anything to that.
ReplyDeleteRegarding the flag on the tank, first of all, you can see on the left side of the turret, there's a small Iraqi flag, which means this M-1 is from iraqi army stocks.
Then the large yellow flag in the middle is the flag of an Iraqi Shia militia called "Kata'ib Hezbollah" (not to be confused with Lebanese Hezbollah).
It's been considered a terrorist organisation by the US for a long time but has received US Air support in recent anti-ISIS operations (along the lines, the ennemy of my ennymy is my ally, I suppose).
"Kata'ib Hezbollah" is said to be receiving funding, training, logistics, and material from Iran's Quds Force. Its fighting force is estimated at around 1000 fighters.