cjchivers:

The Frequency of Weapons From Iraq Inside Syria.

Syrians fighting to overthrow Bashar al-Assad are woefully under-equipped with arms. Unsurprisingly, these are conditions in which black markets proliferate. Many of the arms that are making it into the country have come from Iraq - a fact documented on The New York Times and the At War blog. We’ve been working to take a slice of what’s in circulation, the results of which we’ll publish with time on At War. But one item is in view with the several fighting groups we’ve worked beside — the Iraqi version of the Kalashnikov, known as the Tabuk, made during the time when Saddam Hussein’s military had its own Kalashnikov plant.

ABOUT THE PHOTOGRAPHS

Factory markings on the Tabuk. From the Hisham Haboub Battalion in the Idlib governorate. By the author. A few days ago.