Several interviews were conducted by alsouria.net with the Free Syrian Army TOW snipers whose job is to destroy the Assad mechanized weapons of war on the battlefields. TOW is a US anti-tank weapon that has demonstrated its abilities plenty destroying hundreds of Russian tanks, artillery pieces, and armored vehicles. Its acronym stands for Tube-launched, Optically tracked, Wire-guided.
The effectiveness of the TOW missile has made a significant and direct contribution against the Assad regime during the course of the on-going Syrian civil war thanks to its destructive power and accuracy. Ask any moderate fighter and he will swear by the TOW missile.
In the interviews conducted, all the snipers have adopted the TOW acronym as their nick names. It is their badge of honor considering how effective the weapon has been.
During his interview, Abu Ali Tow, the most infamous TOW sniper based on his kill rate, bragged about the tanks he decommissioned with his accuracy and how proud he was of his achievements on the battlefield. Taking out the tanks that martyred many of his friends who also defected with him was something he took seriously. He had the honor to be the first rebel to fire a TOW missile.
Abu Ali Tow defected from the Assad army and now serves in the Free Syrian Army “Fursan al-Haq” brigade, which is getting direct CIA help. He talked about the big difference the TOW missile made on the battlefields. He attributed its success to its accuracy and its power to easily destroy the ageing Russian tank fleet, some dating back to WWII, Assad is relying upon in his battles.
During the battle for the Aleppo central prison, Abu Ali Tow destroyed 13 different targets. His largest accomplishment to date, however, was the one to liberate the Idlib Province. During this battle, he destroyed 22 different targets between tanks, artillery pieces, and armored vehicles. His best target was the destruction of a tank in the Mastouma district where his hit blew up the Tank’s turret, which flew vertically some 30 meters up before landing back on the tank.
Interviewing other TOW snipers, Abu Souhail Tow mentioned how rare, in the beginning, it was to see a Free Syrian Army rebel using the TOW missile. But as time went by, many of the moderate brigades in the Free Syrian Army began getting more and more of these missiles. Today, it is the most potent weapon on the battlefield bar none, Abu Souhail Tow told alsouria.net.
One of the TOW snipers named Abu Mohammad Tow talked about the efficacy of the TOW missile and its destruction capability. A TOW missile, he said, can penetrate an armor as thick as 95cm (Almost 3 feet), which made it very potent indeed against all the Assad armored arsenal many of them with armors that do not exceed 50cm.
There is no doubt that these TOW snipers will, one day, be honored for standing up to the tyranny of the Assad regime. These are the same fighters Russia is bombing today in order to kill all the moderates. Keeping ISIS strong justifies retaining Assad in place.
From these interviews, it seems though that Putin and Assad have more to worry about than they expected.
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