Two days ago I published my most extensive work of 2020 so far with the Middle East Institute, titled “Shifting Gears: HTS’s Evolving Use of SVBIEDs During the Idlib Offensive of 2019-2020”. This case study initially covers the group’s use of SVBIEDs since the beginning of the Syrian civil war and how its use can be divided into three distinct phases. Secondly, it covers the 2019-2020 Idlib offensive, interspersing a chronological overview of the fighting with details on the changing nature of the use of SVBIEDs, as well as the underlying tactical and strategic reasoning. Finally, it details noteworthy technological developments, including but not limited to the introduction of environment-specific paint schemes, frontal exterior cameras with night-vision capabilities, tablets with target coordinates, drone support teams, and refined main charges consisting of TNT.
If this sounds interesting, feel free to give it a read-through. The case study is available as a PDF, but I recommend reading it on the website as it includes more pictures, which are also higher resolution.
