TOW missile gunner killed in Eastern Ghouta

According to this source, the TOW missile captured by the SAA was one of a series of weapons provided by the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) with BGM-71 TOW anti-tank missiles to the rebels of the Free Syrian Army (FSA) group to fight against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. However, it is unclear how they fell into the hands of terrorists.

And now, as Russia enters the war in Syria, the role of the BGM-71 TOW missile has unexpectedly become more important than the US expected. US officials claim that the BGM-71 TOW missile is the factor that has helped the Syrian rebels and terrorists capture many areas in the northwest of the country in recent times.

Rebel leaders have revealed that the CIA has accelerated the delivery of additional BGM-71 TOW missiles after Russia launched its air campaign in Syria. Observers say the current situation in Syria is reminiscent of the role the US-supplied Stinger missiles played in Afghanistan, forcing the Soviet Union to withdraw from the country in the 1980s.

The BGM-71 TOW missile program, initiated by the CIA, is completely unrelated to the failed program of training and arming Syrian rebels to fight the Islamic State (IS) terrorist group deployed by the US Department of Defense.

The CIA aims to support the rebels against the Assad regime with weapons that destroy the main strength of the Syrian army, tanks and armored vehicles. The CIA buys BGM-71 TOW missiles from Saudi Arabia's stockpile and transports them into Syria through the Turkish border.

Some White House officials said that with the BGM-71 TOW missile program, the administration of US President Barack Obama wants to put enough military pressure on the Assad government to force it to make concessions, accept negotiations to end the conflict and give up power.

"The TOW missile has eliminated the military advantage of Assad's army, which is tanks and armored vehicles. It has the same effect as the Stinger missile in Afghanistan" - analyst Jeff White of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy (USA) commented.

Dubai-based expert Oubai Shahbandar also assessed that TOW missiles played a major role in the rebels' serious weakening of the Syrian army, putting the Assad regime at risk of losing territory in the northwest. "Even the Americans were surprised by the effectiveness of TOW missiles," Mr. Shahbandar emphasized.

However, the reality on the battlefield shows that not only does the FSA possess this type of weapon, but most rebel groups in Syria also have TOW missiles in their arsenals in not small quantities.