Centre D'Etudes et de Recherches Scientifiques مركز الدراسات والبحوث العلمية | |
Agency overview | |
---|---|
Formed | 1971 |
Jurisdiction | Government of Syria |
Headquarters | Jamraya, Rif Dimashq, Syria 33°20′36″N36°08′26″E / 33.3434°N 36.1405°E |
Employees | 20,000 (2015) |
Agency executive |
|
Parent department | Ministry of Defense |
Child agency |
The Scientific Studies and Research Center (SSRC), better known by its French name Centre D'Etudes et de Recherches Scientifiques (CERS), [2] [3] is a Syrian government agency that has the goal of advancing and coordinating scientific and military research activities in the country. [3] [4] It works on research and development for the economic and social development of Syria, especially the computerization of government agencies. [4] It is considered to have better technical capacity and equipment than the Syrian universities. [3] Jane's Information Group Intelligence Services and other analysts believe it is responsible for research and development of nuclear, biological, chemical and missile technology and weapons, [3] [4] including ballistic missiles, as well as advanced conventional arms. [5]
CERS is run by a director-general with the rank of minister, who is directly responsible to the president. Current Director General is Dr. Amr Armanazi. [1] It provides most research and development functions for the Syrian military. Since the 1970s, CERS has also been responsible for the development of civilian science and technology in Syria, and it was on this basis that CERS was able to develop cooperative relationships with Western chemical companies. [6]
SSRC was established in 1971, following a presidential directive in 1969. Its first director-general was Abdullah Watiq Shahid, a nuclear physicist who had become the minister of higher education in 1967. SSRC was ostensibly a civilian agency but Shahid's aim was to pursue weapons development. In 1973 President Hafez al-Assad authorized relations between SSRC and the Syrian Army. SSRC then became the main agency for development and enhancement of weapons for the army. While it remained ostensibly civilian, Ziauddin Sardar's 1982 book Science and Technology in the Middle East said SSRC "belongs to the Syrian defense ministry, and conducts military research." [7]
In 1983 the military chief of staff was made responsible for appointing members of SSRC's board and technical staff. The military was also to authorize all appointments in SSRC's new branch for applied science, the Higher Institute for Applied Sciences and Technology (HIAST). [7] The SSRC director-general was raised to ministerial rank. [7] [8] The production of chemical weapons became one of SSRC's main projects. News media have reported production plants for sarin, VX and mustard gas near Damascus, Hama, Homs, Aleppo and Latakia. Some or all of the plants were established ostensibly as civilian facilities. [7] The highly secretive military facility in Jamraya was established in the 1980s, when Syria was a Soviet ally. [9]
Western intelligence agencies believe that the Syrian procurement structure for biological and chemical weapons uses SSRC as cover. [4] [10] [3] The center has received the required expertise, technology and materials from Russian sources to produce VX nerve gas. [4]
In June 1996 the CIA had discovered that SSRC received a shipment of missile components from China Precision Machinery Import-Export Corporation as part as a wider collaboration between the two institutions. [5]
According to French intelligence, SSRC is responsible for producing toxic agents for use in war. A group named "Branch 450" is allegedly responsible for filling munitions with chemicals and maintaining security of the chemical agent stockpiles. [11]
In June 2020, it was reported that SSRC has been seeking to procure illicit nuclear, biological and chemical weapons of mass destruction technology in southern Germany. In one reported case, it procured laboratory equipment from a company in North Baden, which was to be forwarded to Syria via Lebanon and China. [12]
The CERS is divided into five research institutes and five centers. Research institutes pursue both project oriented and basic scientific research. [1]
CERS facilities are located in Jamraya (Institute 1000, Institute 3000, Branch 450, Branch 550), Barzeh (Institute 2000, Institute 5200) and Masyaf (Institute 4000). [1] Also, Institute 4000 has centers in al-Rashideen, Aleppo (Branch 340) and As-Safira (Project 504, Project 702, Branch 350). [14]
In 2014, it was revealed that CERS together with Hezbollah established a base in Qusayr with underground facilities that allegedly store Shahab-1 missiles, delivered to the organization by the IRGC, and natural uranium. [17] According to IAEA research, Syria possesses up to 50 tons of natural uranium. [18] Suspected nuclear storage facilities were also in Marj al-Sultan. [18] CERS also had bunkers and storage facilities at the Him Shanshar military installation. [19]
According to US intelligence reports, in August 2013, SSRC prepared chemical munitions used for deadly chemical attacks which killed hundreds of Syrian civilians in the Syrian Civil War. [31]
According to French intelligence, SSRC is responsible for producing toxic agents for use in war, pinpointing "Branch 450" as being responsible for filling munitions with chemicals and also the security of sites where the chemical agents are stocked. [11]
In 2005, US president George W. Bush issued Executive Order 13382, "Blocking Property of Weapons of Mass Destruction Proliferators and their Supporters," which prohibited U.S. citizens and residents from doing business with SSRC. [3] [32] In 2007 the US Treasury banned trade with three SSRC subsidiaries: the Higher Institute of Applied Science and Technology (HIAST), the Electronics Institute, and the National Standards and Calibration Laboratory (NSCL). [33] [34]
On 24 April 2017, weeks after the 2017 Khan Shaykhun chemical attack, the United States Department of the Treasury imposed sanctions on 271 SSRC employees for their alleged role in producing chemical weapons. [35] [36]
In 2010, Nitzan Nuriel, the director of the Israel's Counter-Terrorism Bureau, said that SSRC had transferred weapons to Hamas and Hezbollah and that the international community should warn the Syrian government that SSRC would be demolished if it continued to arm terrorist organizations. [37]
On 31 January 2013, one of SSRC's facilities, located at Jamraya, was damaged by an Israeli airstrike which was believed to be targeting a convoy carrying advanced anti-aircraft weaponry from SSRC to the Lebanese Shiite militia Hezbollah. [38] [39] [40] In May 2013 Rif Dimashq airstrikes Israel hit another important shipment of SSMs to Lebanon. [41]
In September 2017 the Israel Defense Forces bombed a SSRC military research facility near Masyaf, probably targeting an advanced missiles factory. Two Syrian soldiers were killed and the facility was severely damaged, with many weapons stored inside destroyed. [42] Syrian media reported another Israeli attack in December 2017. [43]
On 14 April 2018, several buildings alleged to be associated with the Syrian chemical weapons programme at SSRC's facility at Barzah in Damascus were destroyed during US missile strikes on chemical weapons sites. Other buildings within the larger complex were undamaged. [44]
In August 2018, Aziz Azbar, the head of SSRC Institute 4000 in Masyaf at the time, was assassinated in a car bombing, allegedly by Israel. [45] An Israeli airstrike on January 12, 2019 damaged a suspected Iranian target in a Syrian military base 1.5 km west of the research center. [46]
On 29 February 2020, Turkish drone strikes bombed the SSRC site in As-Safira. [47] A Turkish official claimed the site was used to develop chemical weapons. [48]
On 24 December 2020, an Israeli airstrike near Masyaf destroyed four missile production facilities. [49] The attack reportedly killed six people and destroyed depots and missile production facilities belonging to Iranian militias. [50]
A ballistic missile (BM) is a type of missile that uses projectile motion to deliver warheads on a target. These weapons are powered only during relatively brief periods—most of the flight is unpowered. Short-range ballistic missiles (SRBM) typically stay within the Earth's atmosphere, while most larger missiles are exo-atmospheric. The largest ICBMs are capable of full orbital flight. These weapons are in a distinct category from cruise missiles, which are aerodynamically guided in powered flight and thus restricted to the atmosphere.
The Israeli Air Force operates as the aerial and space warfare branch of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). It was founded on May 28, 1948, shortly after the Israeli Declaration of Independence. As of April 2022, Aluf Tomer Bar has been serving as the Air Force commander.
The relations between Iran and Israel are divided into four major phases: the ambivalent period from 1947 to 1953, the friendly period during the era of the Pahlavi dynasty from 1953 to 1979, the worsening period following the Iranian Revolution from 1979 to 1990, and the ongoing period of open hostility since the end of the Gulf War in 1991. In 1947, Iran was among 13 countries that voted against the United Nations Partition Plan for the British Mandate of Palestine. Two years later, Iran also voted against Israel's admission to the United Nations.
The Fajr-3 is an Iranian heavy 240 mm intermediate-range multiple-launch artillery rocket (MLRS). The Fajr-3 is a license-built copy, with slight modifications, of a North Korean MLRS called the M-1985. The Fajr-3 was introduced in the 1990s and has since been exported to Hamas and Hezbollah.
Hezbollah, a Lebanese Shia Islamist political party and militant group, has an exceptionally strong military wing, thought to be stronger than the Lebanese Army, and equivalent to the armed strength of a medium-sized army. A hybrid force, the group maintains "robust conventional and unconventional military capabilities", and is generally considered to be the most powerful non-state actor in the world.
The Higher Institute for Applied Sciences and Technology (HIAST) is center of Excellence for Higher Education, Research & Development in Damascus, Syria. It belongs to the Syrian Scientific Studies and Research Center (SSRC).
A Scud missile is one of a series of tactical ballistic missiles developed by the Soviet Union during the Cold War. It was exported widely to both Second and Third World countries. The term comes from the NATO reporting name attached to the missile by Western intelligence agencies. The Russian names for the missile are the R-11, and the R-17Elbrus. The name Scud has been widely used to refer to these missiles and the wide variety of derivative variants developed in other countries based on the Soviet design.
The History of the Israel Air Force begins in May 1948, shortly after the formation of the State of Israel. Following Israel's declaration of independence on May 14, its pre-state national institutions transformed into the agencies of a state, and on May 26, 1948, the Israeli Air Force was formed. Beginning with a small collection of light aircraft, the force soon transformed into a comprehensive fighting force. It has since participated in several wars and numerous engagements, becoming what has been described as "The mightiest air force in the Middle East".
The January 2013 Rif Dimashq airstrike was an aerial attack in the Rif Dimashq Governorate of Syria, which targeted a convoy alleged to be carrying weapons from Syria to the Lebanese Shi'a militia Hezbollah. The convoy was attacked on 31 January 2013. According to several media sources, Israeli forces allegedly conducted the strike, however Israel hasn't officially responded to the allegations.
Jamraya or Jemraya is a village in the Qudsaya District of Rif Dimashq in southern Syria. It lies 3 miles (5 km) to the northwest of the Syrian capital of Damascus city, beyond Mount Qasioun, and is now an outlying suburb of greater Damascus. It is between al-Hamah and Qudsaya town to the south, and Ashrafiyat al-Wadi to the north. It is about 10 miles (15 km) from the Lebanese border. According to the Syria Central Bureau of Statistics, the village had a population of 1,156 in the 2004 census.
The Iran–Israel proxy conflict, also known as the Iran–Israel proxy war or Iran–Israel Cold War, is an ongoing proxy conflict between Iran and Israel. In the Israeli–Lebanese conflict, Iran has supported Lebanese Shia militias, most notably Hezbollah. In the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Iran has backed Palestinian groups such as Hamas. Israel has supported Iranian rebels, such as the People's Mujahedin of Iran, conducted airstrikes against Iranian allies in Syria and assassinated Iranian nuclear scientists. In 2018 Israeli forces directly attacked Iranian forces in Syria.
The May 2013 Rif Dimashq airstrikes were a series of aerial attacks made on targets in Syria on 3 and 5 May 2013. The 3 May attack was on targets at Damascus International Airport. The 5 May attacks were on targets at Jamraya, and the Al-Dimas and Maysalun areas in Rif Dimashq. Although officially Israel neither confirmed nor denied its involvement, former Mossad director Danny Yatom and former government member Tzachi Hanegbi inferred Israel's involvement in the attack. Official Syrian sources denied any attack on its soil on 3 May, but did accuse Israel for the attacks on 5 May.
Syria's chemical weapons program began in the 1970s with weapons and training from Egypt and the Soviet Union, with production of chemical weapons in Syria beginning in the mid-1980s. For some time, Syria was believed to have the world's third-largest stockpile of chemical weapons, after the United States and Russia. Prior to September 2013 Syria had not publicly admitted to possessing chemical weapons, although Western intelligence services believed it to hold one of the world's largest stockpiles. In September 2013, French intelligence put the Syrian stockpile at 1,000 tonnes, including Yperite, VX and "several hundred tonnes of sarin". At the time, Syria was one of a handful of states which had not ratified the Chemical Weapons Convention. In September 2013, Syria joined the CWC, and agreed to the destruction of its weapons, to be supervised by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), as required by the convention. A joint OPCW-United Nations mission was established to oversee the destruction process. Syria joined OPCW after international condemnation of the August 2013 Ghouta chemical attack, for which Western states held the Syrian government responsible and agreed to the prompt destruction of its chemical weapons, resulting in U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry declaring on 20 July 2014: "we struck a deal where we got 100 percent of the chemical weapons out." The destruction of Syria's chemical weapons that the Assad government had declared was completed by August 2014, yet further disclosures, incomplete documentation, and allegations of withholding part of Syria's chemical weapons stockpile since mean that serious concerns regarding chemical weapons and related sites in Syria remain. On 5 April 2017, the government of Syria allegedly unleashed a chemical attack that killed 70 civilians. A suspected chemical attack on Douma on 9 April 2018 that killed at least 49 civilians has been blamed on the Syrian Government.
Several incidents have taken place on the Israeli–Syrian ceasefire line during the Syrian Civil War, straining the relations between the countries. The incidents are considered a spillover of the Quneitra Governorate clashes since 2012 and later incidents between Syrian Army and the rebels, ongoing on the Syrian-controlled side of the Golan and the Golan Neutral Zone and the Hezbollah involvement in the Syrian Civil War. Through the incidents, which began in late 2012, as of mid-2014, one Israeli civilian was killed and at least 4 soldiers wounded; on the Syrian-controlled side, it is estimated that at least ten soldiers were killed, as well as two unidentified militants, who were identified near Ein Zivan on Golan Heights.
The January 2015 Mazraat Amal incident was an airstrike against a two-car convoy that killed six Hezbollah fighters, including two prominent commanders, and a general of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards (IRGC), Mohammad Ali Allahdadi, at al-Amal Farms in the Quneitra District of Syria, in the Eastern Golan Heights, on 18 January 2015, during the Syrian Civil War. The attack was largely attributed to Israel, which did not officially confirm that it carried it out. Hezbollah and IRGC held Israel responsible and threatened to retaliate. On 19 January 2015, Al-Nusra Front member Abu Azzam al-Idlibi claimed that Jihad Mughniyeh and the other Hezbollah fighters were killed in an Al-Nusra Front ambush at Jaroud in the Qalamoun Mountains in the Al-Qutayfah District northeast of Damascus, claiming that it "will be the end of the Persian project, God willing."
Israel's official position on the Syrian Civil War has been strict neutrality. However, Israel has become involved politically and militarily to prevent the growing influence and entrenchment of Iranian forces and its proxies throughout Syria. Israel's military activity, officially called Operation Chess, has primarily been limited to missile and air strikes targeting Iranian facilities in Syria as well as those of its proxies, especially Hezbollah. These attacks were not officially acknowledged before 2017. Israel has also carried out air strikes in Syria to disrupt weapons shipments to Hezbollah. By August 2022, the UK investigative non-profit Airwars estimated that 17-45 civilians were killed and another 42-101 civilians were wounded by Israeli airstrikes in Syria since 2013. Syrian reports place these figures much lower than other foreign actors in the conflict. Israel has also provided humanitarian aid to victims of the civil war from 2013 to September 2018, an effort that was ramped up after June 2016 with the launch of Operation Good Neighbour.
The March 2017 Israel–Syria incident took place on 17 March 2017, when Israeli Air Force struck a target in Syria. In response the Syrian Army fired several S-200 missiles at Israeli jets above Golan Heights. Israel reported that one Syrian missile had been shot down by an Arrow 2 missile, while none of its aircraft had been damaged. Israel stated it was targeting weapon shipments headed toward anti-Israeli forces, specifically Hezbollah, in Lebanon, while the Syrian Army claimed that a military site near Palmyra had been struck.
The Barzah scientific research centre, also known as the Barzah Scientific Research Facility or Institute 2000 is a facility of the Syrian Scientific Studies and Research Center located in Barzeh, Damascus. Several buildings at the centre alleged to be associated with a Syrian chemical weapons programme were destroyed during the 2018 missile strikes against Syria during the Syrian Civil War. Other buildings within the larger complex were undamaged.
The Iran–Israel conflict during the Syrian civil war refers to the Iranian–Israeli standoff in and around Syria during the Syrian conflict. With increasing Iranian involvement in Syria from 2011 onwards, the conflict shifted from a proxy war into a direct confrontation by early 2018.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)