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Turkey Deploys MIM-23 Hawk Missiles in Syria’s Idlib

Turkish military vehicles patrol near the Syrian town of Saraqeb in the northwestern province of Idlib, Sept. 4, 2019. (Getty Images)
Turkish military vehicles patrol near the Syrian town of Saraqeb in the northwestern province of Idlib, Sept. 4, 2019. (Getty Images)
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Turkey Deploys MIM-23 Hawk Missiles in Syria’s Idlib

Turkish military vehicles patrol near the Syrian town of Saraqeb in the northwestern province of Idlib, Sept. 4, 2019. (Getty Images)
Turkish military vehicles patrol near the Syrian town of Saraqeb in the northwestern province of Idlib, Sept. 4, 2019. (Getty Images)

The Turkish army deployed US-made medium-range surface-to-air MIM-23 Hawk missiles in Syria’s Idlib Idlib, satellite images showed.

Shared on social media, the images reveal the location of the air defense system in Al-Mastoumah camp, which is located five kilometers south of Idlib city.

The camp is strategically located along the Idlib-Latakia M4 Highway.

This is not the first time Ankara deploys such a defense system in Syria. In early 2018, Turkey sent the system to Dar Izza in the western Aleppo countryside.

The deployment of the MIM-23 HAWK system means that the Turkish army will no longer need to rely on fighter jets and drones to down Syrian regime fighter jets.

Sources at the Syrian armed opposition justified the deployment of the defense system as being part of Turkish measures to protect its borders against any regime attacks.

The HAWK system was developed in the 1960s but has been improved over the years. It has the ability to destroy aircraft flying at an altitude of up to 20 kilometers and has a range of 40 kilometers.

Local sources in Idlib noticed an unprecedented movement of Turkish military forces in Idlib, particularly following Saturday’s visit by Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar to the border with Syria, where the army is pushing military reinforcements to Idlib.

A column of dozens of Turkish vehicles was seen crossing into Syrian territory, via the Kafr Lusin crossing.

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Druze Group ‘Rijal al-Karama’ Rejects Disarmament, Calls for Weapons Regulation in Sweida

Mourners attend funeral of those killed in clashes in southern Sweida town on Saturday (AFP)
Mourners attend funeral of those killed in clashes in southern Sweida town on Saturday (AFP)
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Druze Group ‘Rijal al-Karama’ Rejects Disarmament, Calls for Weapons Regulation in Sweida

Mourners attend funeral of those killed in clashes in southern Sweida town on Saturday (AFP)
Mourners attend funeral of those killed in clashes in southern Sweida town on Saturday (AFP)

A leading Druze movement said on Sunday that the issue of surrendering arms remains unresolved, even as local leaders in southern Syria announced the official start of implementing a peace agreement brokered by Druze clerics and dignitaries in Sweida province.

Bassem Abu Fakhr, spokesman for the “Rijal al-Karama” movement, told Asharq Al-Awsat that the group's weapons were solely for defense and had never been used offensively.

“The matter of handing over weapons falls under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Defense, and no final decision has been made yet,” Abu Fakhr said. “Our arms have never posed a threat to any party. We have not attacked anyone, and our weapons exist to protect our land and honor.”

He added that while the group does not object to regulating the presence of weapons, full surrender was out of the question.

“We have no issue with organizing arms under state authority, provided they remain within the province’s administrative boundaries and under state supervision,” he said. “But the matter of weapons remains unresolved.”

Formed in 2013, Rijal al-Karama was established to protect the Druze community and prevent its youth from being conscripted into fighting for any side in Syria’s protracted conflict, which erupted after mass protests against then President Bashar al-Assad.

The group continues to operate as an independent local defense force, separate from state security institutions.

Abu Fakhr told Asharq Al-Awsat that a high-level meeting held last Thursday in Sweida—attended by senior Druze spiritual leaders Sheikh Hikmat al-Hijri and Sheikh Hammoud al-Hanawi, along with local dignitaries and community members—resulted in an agreement to reactivate the police and judicial police under the Ministry of Interior.

Abu Fakhr also denied recent reports claiming that Druze clerics, tribal leaders, and faction commanders had agreed to fully surrender their weapons to the state.

“This issue has not been resolved by all parties in Sweida,” he said, reiterating the group’s position: “We have no objection to organizing the weapons under state oversight, as long as they remain within the administrative boundaries of the province, but not to surrendering them.”

The statement underscores continuing tensions over the role of armed groups in Sweida, a province that has largely remained outside the control of both government and opposition forces throughout Syria’s civil war.