How to Build an Army in Your Basement

From homemade rockets to car bombs, take a look at the weapons that Syria’s rebels are using to defeat Bashar al-Assad.

BY ELIOT HIGGINS | DECEMBER 4, 2012

SYRIAN ARMY DIY WEAPONS

In late August, activists began posting videos online of what they described as "barrel bombs" -- barrels filled with explosives and shrapnel that were dropped from helicopters. In one report, a Syrian military defector described building more than 100 of these bombs, which an analyst described as doing roughly the same damage as a 1,000-pound bomb.

In late October, a series of videos filmed inside a Syrian Air Force helicopter showed barrel bombs being dropped. Odd as it may seem for a professional army to use such weapons, Assad's forces aren't the first to resort to such tactics: There have been reports of them being used in both Croatia and Sudan. With a limited number of ground attack helicopters, barrel bombs may be Assad's way to get maximum firepower out of his Mil Mi-8 helicopters, which are used primarily for transport.

 

Eliot Higgins writes for the Brown Moses Blog, which covers the military hardware and tactics used in the Arab revolts. Follow him on Twitter: @Brown_Moses.