25th Special Mission Forces Division explained

Unit Name:25th Special Mission Forces Division
Dates:2013–present
Country: Syrian Arab Republic
Allegiance: Syrian Armed Forces
Branch: Syrian Army
Type:Special forces
Role:Air assault
Close-quarters combat
Counter-insurgency
Counter-terrorism
Direct action
Offensive
Special operations
Special reconnaissance
Unconventional warfare
Urban warfare
Size:12,000 (2022)
Garrison:Aleppo
Nickname:Tiger Forces or Quwwat Al-Nimr (Arabic: قوات النمر)
Colors Label:Tactical color marking
Equipment:AK-74M rifles
T-90 tanks
T-72 tanks
T-55 tanks
Rys LMV tactical vehicle
Gaz Tigr tactical vehicle
Commander1:Maj. Gen. Saleh Abdullah
Commander1 Label:Current Commander
Commander2:Brig. Gen. Yunis Muhammad
Commander2 Label:Deputy Commander & Chief of Staff
Commander3:Brig. Gen. Yasser Ahmed
Commander3 Label:Commander of Assault Troops
Notable Commanders:Maj. Gen. Suheil al-Hassan[1]

The 25th Special Mission Forces Division, mostly known by their former name Tiger Forces or Quwwat al-Nimr (Arabic: قُوَّات النِّمْر), is an elite formation (special forces unit) of the Syrian Arab Army under the charge of the commander Major General Saleh Abdullah.[2] It was formed in late 2013 and functions primarily as an offensive unit in the Syrian Civil War.[3] It has been described as a "hot commodity for any government offensive", but their relatively small numbers make it difficult to deploy them to multiple fronts at once.[4]

Command structure

25th SMF Division (2022)[5]

Organization until 2019

According to Gregory Waters of the Middle East Institute in October 2018,[7] the Tiger Forces used to deploy approximately 24 groups (halfway between a company and a battalion), which organise about 4,000 infantry, as well as an attached artillery regiment and an armoured unit.p. 6 Alongside permanent troops, the Tiger Forces make use of affiliated militia, who remain largely garrisoned in their hometowns until called on to join offensives as the need arises.

List of subordinate units in 2018

Later reports seem to suggest an altered internal structure, stating that the unit consists of the following subunits:[8] [9]

The Tiger Forces consisted of as many as 24 subgroups of varying size. Tiger Forces groups/subunits were founded by prominent individuals who often also served as commanders of a particular group (the group often bearing the name of the individual who founded and/or commanded the group). The Tiger Forces regular groups have local defensive units, as well as operational units which deploy across the country.p. 6 According Gregory Waters, the operational units outside standing groups make up one-and-a-half to two brigades.p. 6

Cheetah Forces

Cheetah Forces[18] or Qawat al-Fahoud (Arabic: قوات الفهود)[19] as of October 2018 is the largest sub-unit of the Tiger Forces.p. 8 The Cheetah Forces is subdivided into as many as 14 Company-level units: Cheetah 1 to Cheetah 10, Cheetah 15, Cheetah 16, Cheetah 41 and the 2nd Storming Battalion (Rami Hamadi Group).p. 8 Cheetah 6 were the first soldiers that ended the 35-month long Relieving of Kuweires Military Airbase,[20] [21] while Cheetah 3 along with the Desert Hawks Brigade completed the East Aleppo ISIS encirclement.[22]

The current commander is Brigadier General Ali Ahmed Kna’an al-Hajjip. 11 and the deputy commander is Colonel Lu’ayy Sleitan.[18]

Panther Forces

Panther Forces[23] – According to Leith Fadel in 2016, the commander was Colonel Ali Shaheen,[24] and they were involved in the Palmyra offensive (March 2016), where they were redeployed to another front after it was over.[23] [24] According to Waters, the "Panther Groups" are actually the Cheetahs, and are not commanded by Ali Shaheen, who instead commands the Leouth Groups.[25]

Armour and artillery units

The Tiger Forces have a dedicated artillery regiment (led by Lieutenant Colonel Dourid Awad) and an armoured unit; both the artillery and armoured units appear to be distinct entities within the Tiger Forces.p. 6

Both the artillery and armoured units are independent from other groups, reporting directly to the Tiger Forces’ command. The size of the armoured unit is unknown.

Combat history

The special forces unit was formed during the Syrian civil war.

According to Gregory Waters, the Tiger Forces were operated by the Air Force Intelligence Directorate.p. 2[26] After successful operations in Latakia and Hama,p. 2 Colonel Suheil al-Hassan was tasked a special project by the Syrian Armed Forces Central Command in the fall of 2013—to train and lead a Special Forces unit that would work primarily as an offensive unit. Colonel Hassan handpicked many of the soldiers that would later form the Tiger Forces.[27] Initially, the unit was formed by recruiting personnel from the 53rd Regiment (part of Special Forces Command) and the 14th Special Forces Division, on the other hand, heavy equipment was supplied by the 4th and 11th Divisions.[28]

On 25 December 2015, Suheil al-Hassan was promoted to major general after refusing to be brigadier general the year before.[29] He played a key role in commanding Syrian troops during the 2016 Aleppo campaign. The Tiger Forces were tasked with cutting the key rebel supply lines to Aleppo city.

In early spring 2015, following Syrian government's loss of the city of Idlib, the unit was reorganised.p. 3 The Tiger Forces were one of few in the Syrian Army to first deploy Russian T-90 tanks,[30] others being the 4th Armoured Division and Desert Hawks Brigade.[31] [32] A Russian-supplied Rys LMV was seen after defeating ISIL in the village of Ayn Al-Hanish in the Dayr Hafir Plains.[33]

The most famous and effective tactic of the Tiger Forces is probing the enemy from multiple axes to find a weak spot, then sending a large mechanized force to that area to capture many villages at once.[34] According to Gregory Waters, they ultimately reported to Major General Jamil Hassan, the director of the country's Air Force Intelligence Directorate.

In September/October 2018, reports indicated that between 6,500 and 8,000 Tiger Forces members will be demobilized.[35] [36] It's reported that the unit works closely with Russian KSSO units, the latter acting as advisors.

Renaming and reorganization

On 29 August 2019, the Syrian Ministry of Defense reorganized the unit, renaming it from Tiger Forces to 25th Special Mission Forces Division and placing it under the Syrian Army's central command, while keeping Maj. Gen. Suheil al-Hassan as its commanding officer.[37] [38] In March 2022, the Wagner Group began recruiting ex-members of the 25th Special Mission Forces Division so that they could fight for Russia in the Russo-Ukrainian War, which was later denied.[39]

In April 2024, Maj. Gen. Suheil al-Hassan was replaced as head of 25th Division by former senior Tiger Forces commander, former 30th Division commander Maj. Gen. Saleh Abdullah.[1]

See also

References

Bibliography

Further reading

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Changes to Syria's special forces this week: Recently appointed Mohamad Saftly moved to command 30th SRG Division. Replaced as head of Special Forces by Suhail Hassan. Suhail replaced as head of 25th Div by former senior Tiger commander, current 30th Div commander Saleh Abdullah.. Twitter. 14 April 2024. 12 April 2024. Gregory Waters.
  2. Book: Harris, William . Quicksilver War: Syria, Iraq and the Spiral of Conflict . Oxford University Press . 2018 . 9780190874872 . New York. 183 . Glossary.
  3. Book: Harris, William . Quicksilver War: Syria, Iraq and the Spiral of Conflict . Oxford University Press . 2018 . 9780190874872 . New York . 183 . Glossary.
  4. Web site: Exclusive: Tiger Forces to Redeploy to Northern Hama. Leith Fadel. Al-Masdar News. 10 November 2015. 12 February 2016. 16 February 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160216013613/http://www.almasdarnews.com/article/exclusive-tiger-forces-to-redeploy-to-northern-hama/. dead.
  5. Web site: From Tiger Forces to the 16th Brigade: Russia’s evolving Syrian proxies. Middle East Institute. Gregory Waters. 12 September 2022. 16 November 2023.
  6. https://twitter.com/SAMSyria0/status/1792833139758284953?t=T8XDyxmDdt8WnYay65519g&s=19 استشهاد العقيد شرف عبدو السلات من مرتبات اللواء 26 مشاة - فرقة 25 مهام خاصة من الجيش العربي السوري أثناء أداء واجبه الوطني في البادية السورية في المعارك ضد تنظيم "د.ا.عش" الإرهابي شرقي محافظة حمص، الشهيد من محافظة إدلب.
  7. Book: Waters . Gregory . THE TIGER FORCES . October 2018 . Middle East Institute . 2,3,6 . 9 July 2019.
  8. Web site: Syrian army prepares for post-conflict challenges . https://web.archive.org/web/20171116142820/http://www.janes.com/images/assets/474/75474/Syrian_army_prepares_for_post-conflict_challenges.pdf . 16 November 2017 . dead.
  9. Web site: A statistical breakdown of army losses in recent southern Raqqa fighting with ISIS. 31 July 2017. al-Masdar. 30 December 2017. 6 November 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20181106013838/https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/statistical-breakdown-army-losses-recent-southern-raqqa-fighting-isis/. dead.
  10. Web site: First footage of the Syrian Army's Tiger Forces destroying jihadist militias in Hama. 27 December 2017. al-Masdar. 30 December 2017. 1 March 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210301155420/https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/first-footage-syrian-armys-tiger-forces-destroying-jihadist-militias-hama/. dead.
  11. Web site: Farsnews. en.farsnews.com. 30 December 2017. 31 December 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20171231103247/http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13961002000651. dead.
  12. Web site: The Southern Campaign: Interview with the Tiger Forces' Taha Regiment . Aymenn Jawad Al-Tamimi . Aymenn Jawad Al-Tamimi . 7 July 2018 . 9 July 2018.
  13. Web site: Syrian special forces leave west Palmyra for east Aleppo. 11 February 2017. al-Masdar. 30 December 2017. 2 May 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190502071455/https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/syrian-special-forces-leave-west-palmyra-east-aleppo/. dead.
  14. https://www.facebook.com/SYRIAN.SYriaRealInfosAndNews/videos/syrian-armys-tiger-forces_-history-and-capabilities/348833845868494/
  15. News: Large number of Syrian Army reinforcements sent to Idlib. 2018-01-16. AMN – Al-Masdar News المصدر نيوز. 2018-01-16. en-US. 9 October 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20211009113245/https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/large-number-syrian-army-reinforcements-sent-idlib/. dead.
  16. Web site: السويداء: "فاطميون" و"النمر" و"حزب الله" لقيادة معركة درعا . As-Suwayda: Fatimion, Al-Nimr and Hezbollah to lead the battle of Daraa . Almodon . ar . 26 June 2018 . 11 August 2018.
  17. Web site: ريف حماة: مليشيات النظام مشغولة بالتعفيش! . Hama countryside: the regime's militias are busy with Altafish! . Almodon . ar . 17 May 2019 . 11 August 2018.
  18. Web site: Cheetah Forces Capture 30km of Territory from ISIS in East Aleppo: Kuweires Airport Within Sight. Leith Fadel. Al-Masdar News. 19 October 2015. 18 February 2016. 20 July 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180720141901/https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/cheetah-forces-capture-30km-of-territory-from-isis-in-east-aleppo-kuweires-airport-within-sight/. dead.
  19. Web site: The Russian Deployment in Syria and Iraq Makes Its Presence Felt . Files.ethz.ch . 2017-06-23.
  20. Web site: Syrian Army and Hezbollah Advance in Southern and Eastern Aleppo – Latest Map Update. Chris Tomson. Al-Masdar News. 11 November 2015. 18 February 2016. 20 July 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180720111208/https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/syrian-army-and-hezbollah-advance-in-southern-and-eastern-aleppo-latest-map-update/. dead.
  21. Web site: Cheetah Forces Lift the Three Year Long Siege of the Kuweires Military Airbase. Leith Fadel. Al-Masdar News. 10 November 2015. 18 February 2016.
  22. Web site: Tiger Forces complete the east Aleppo encirclement: 800+ ISIS fighters trapped. Leith Fadel. Al-Masdar News. 20 February 2016. 20 February 2016. 10 October 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20171010010014/https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/tiger-forces-complete-the-east-aleppo-encirclement-800-isis-fighters-trapped/. dead.
  23. Web site: Russian Air Force hammers ISIS' oil routes in east Homs as the Syrian Army advances on Palmyra. Leith Fadel. Al-Masdar News. 5 March 2016. 6 June 2016. 24 November 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20181124001551/https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/russian-air-force-hammers-isis-east-homs-syrian-army-advances-palmyra/. dead.
  24. Web site: Syrian Army cancels the Palmyra-Deir Ezzor offensive. Leith Fadel. Al-Masdar News. 18 April 2016. 6 June 2016. 24 January 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190124223557/https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/syrian-army-cancels-palmyra-deir-ezzor-offensive/. dead.
  25. Web site: Tiger Forces, Part 1: The War Crimes of the "Cheetah" Groups . Gregory . Waters . 23 July 2018 . International Review . International Review . 4 August 2018.
  26. Web site: Assad Regime Militias and Shi'ite Jihadis in the Syrian Civil War. 30 November 2016.
  27. Web site: Who is Colonel Suheil al-Hassan of the Tiger Forces?. Leith Fadel. Al-Masdar News. 26 February 2015. 12 February 2016. 12 June 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180612190401/https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/colonel-suheil-al-hassan-tiger-forces/. dead.
  28. Web site: The Lion and the Eagle: The Syrian Arab Army's Destruction and Rebirth.
  29. Web site: Prominent Tiger Forces Commander Promoted to Major General. Leith Fadel. Al-Masdar News. 15 December 2015. 5 June 2016. 17 July 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180717055009/https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/tiger-forces-commander-promoted-to-major-general/. dead.
  30. Web site: Tiger Forces mobilize T-90 tanks for upcoming Aleppo offensive. Leith Fadel. Al-Masdar News. 28 May 2016. 7 June 2016. 30 June 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160630023613/https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/tiger-forces-mobilize-t-90-tanks-upcoming-aleppo-offensive/. dead.
  31. Web site: Convoy of Russian T-90 tanks arrive in southern Aleppo. Leith Fadel. Al-Masdar News. 23 January 2016. 8 June 2016. 30 June 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160630090036/https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/convoy-of-russian-t-90-tanks-arrive-in-southern-aleppo/. dead.
  32. Web site: VIDEO: Syrian Army deploys T-90 tanks in the battle for Aleppo. Chris Tomson. Al-Masdar News. 31 October 2016. 11 August 2017. 12 August 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170812022426/https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/video-syrian-army-deploys-t-90-tanks-battle-aleppo/. dead.
  33. Web site: Tiger Forces continue encirclement of ISIS in east Aleppo. Leith Fadel. Al-Masdar News. 26 January 2016. 11 August 2017. 12 August 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170812022409/https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/tiger-forces-continue-encirclement-of-isis-in-east-aleppo/. dead.
  34. Web site: Syrian Army on verge of kicking ISIS out of Aleppo province: Map Update. Izat Charkatli. Al-Masdar News. 24 May 2017. 11 August 2017. 12 August 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170812024149/https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/syrian-army-verge-kicking-isis-aleppo-province-map-update/. dead.
  35. Web site: Source: The "Tiger" Cancels the Contracts of 6500 of Its Troops throughout Syria. 20 September 2018. Enab Baladi.
  36. Web site: As large reinforcements are sent to the west of Euphrates and preparations underway for the demobilization of thousands of Tiger Troops, the Syrian regime's head issues a decree to fill the forces of its army . The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. 9 October 2018.
  37. Web site: Assad Disbands Makhlouf Militias, Renames 'Tiger Forces'. Asharq AL-awsat. en. 2019-08-31.
  38. Web site: Syrian Army begins 2nd phase of Idlib offensive, several areas captured. Al-Masdar News. 14 November 2019. 14 November 2019. 15 October 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20211015053248/https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/syrian-army-begins-2nd-phase-of-idlib-offensive-several-areas-captured/. dead.
  39. Web site: Russia's Broken Steamroller: Why the Structure of the Russian Army Prevents Victory in Ukraine . Andrew McGregor . Aberfoyle International Security . 7 April 2022 . 14 April 2022 .

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