On the 21th June the Afrin Liberation Forces or “Hêzên Rizgariya Efrînê” released photos, a video and statements about a raid carried out by the group on an outpost of the SNA (reportedly Faylaq al-Sham also known as the Sham Legion) between the villages of Brad and Kafr Nabu in the Aleppo Governorate in northern Syria (an approximate location could be at these coordinates-“36°21’49.96″N 36°53’52.05″E”).
Aleppo
Optic Mounted PKM in Syria (2016)
Kurdistan Insider posted this video of a Syrian Army advance in Aleppo in 2016. Most of the PKM variants being used in the Syrian conflict have been seen without any sort of optics platforms mounted to them, this is mostly because of the lack of equipment that many of these rebel groups can capture.
However in this case, it appears to be a thermal or at least an IR capable optic platform due to the bulbous appearance, in addition to the numerous knobs which might be battery caps for power. In addition the eye piece appears to be fitted or contoured to the shooter’s eye, indicating a bright screen that needs to be shielded during times of low light. Because this is a Syrian Army position, it is most likely that the optic is Russian supplied.
In the same video clip, what appears to be an AK century series rifle being used by frontline soldiers, possibly in 5.45x39mm due to the straighter magazine in use.
