First of all, I would like to thank a number of people who assisted me with information, translations, geolocations, and footage for this article. These people include, among others; E_Of_Justice, John Marquee, Suheil al-Ghazi, Samir, Qalaat Al Mudiq, Danspiun, Jakub Janovsky, …
Syria
Triumph & Symbolism – What Happens To Captured Car Bombs
Ever since the conflicts in Syria and Iraq progressed toward semi-conventional fighting in 2013-2014, up-armoured suicide car bombs, or Suicide Vehicle-Borne IEDs (SVBIEDs) have been a recurring feature of the battlefields. Lacking air superiority, non-state actors in both countries have resorted to …
The Last Victory – The SVBIEDs Of The 2015 Idlib Offensive
This article covers the 2015 Idlib offensive extensively, with some background. If you're interested in a broader view of how Jabhat al-Nusra's (now Hayat Tahrir al-Sham/HTS) use of SVBIEDs has changed over time as part of different phases up until the 2019-2020 Greater Idlib offensive, read my case …
Cinematic Depictions of Up-Armoured SVBIEDs: A Review
Following the rise of the Islamic State (IS), directors around the world have sought to capture this multi-faceted phenomenon on the big screen. Movies and TV shows have covered IS in different ways, with stories ranging from the qualms of IS foreign fighters to the grinding counter-IS fight …
Transplanted Armour: The Franken-SVBIEDs of the Islamic State
In the process of capturing a piece of territory that at its height was larger than the UK, the Islamic State (IS) was able to capture large quantities of armoured vehicles from its opponents. While many of these vehicles (primarily those of Soviet origin) were reinserted into their stated combat …