Sensitive weapons, including aircraft, were stolen from American bases in Iraq and Syria

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[size=52]Sensitive weapons, including aircraft, were stolen from American bases in Iraq and Syria[/size]

[size=45]The American website “The Intercept” reported that secret documents revealed that “sensitive” military equipment was stolen from American military bases in Iraq and Syria, such as missiles and drones, and that the Pentagon may not be fully aware of the extent of what happened. He revealed the American site through secret documents he obtained.[/size]
[size=45]He reported incidents of theft that affected American military sites in Iraq and Syria, noting that American investigations began earlier this year indicating that many sensitive equipment and weapons, including guided missiles and drones, were stolen in Iraq.[/size]
[size=45]The report pointed out: This comes at a time when thefts of hundreds of thousands of dollars of military equipment allocated to American forces in Iraq and Syria were recorded between 2020 and 2022.[/size]
[size=45]Although the report indicated that the American bases in Iraq and Syria are present in the context of carrying out missions against ISIS, experts also say that they are used to monitor Iran, adding that since the outbreak of fighting between Israel and Hamas, these bases have been subjected to attacks with missiles and drones, as part of An undeclared war between the United States, Iran, and its loyal factions. After the report pointed out the Pentagon’s assertions that President Joe Biden has no more important priority than protecting the lives of American soldiers in the field, the American website, after obtaining the secret documents, asked about: How can the United States protect its soldiers as long as it cannot secure its military equipment from theft?[/size]
[size=45]The report quoted the director of the “Cost of War Project” at Brown University, Stephanie Saville, as saying, “We do not tend to think critically enough about the ripple effects of this costly American military presence,” adding that “the so-called war on terrorism is not over yet. But it changed. “We can understand these arms thefts as just one of the many political costs of this ongoing campaign.” The report revealed that details about the thefts that took place in Iraq, which were never announced by the US Army, were found in criminal investigation files obtained through the Freedom of Information Act.[/size]
[size=45]The report explained that military investigators were informed last February that 13 commercial drones, worth approximately $162,500, had been stolen from a US facility in the city of Erbil sometime last year, but investigators did not identify any suspects. In addition, the report referred to a separate investigation that stated that “numerous weapons and sensitive equipment,” including sighting equipment and Javelin shoulder-guided missile launchers, had been stolen from Forward Operating Base “Union-3” in Baghdad, or while It was transported to the base, where the losses incurred by the US government were estimated at approximately $480,000. According to the report, investigators did not conclude that the thefts were an inside job, as the investigation said that “no American employee was known to participate.” In contrast, investigators believe that local residents are the suspects. The report pointed out that the document shows that “Iraqi criminal organizations and militias are targeting convoys and containers of weapons and equipment.” In addition, the document indicates that there are problems related to the theft of American containers by these groups and local citizens outside the “Union 3” base due to lack of security. Earlier this year, the American website revealed at least four major thefts and one loss of American weapons and equipment in Iraq and Syria from 2020 to 2022, including 40 mm high-explosive bombs, armor-piercing shells, and artillery tools and equipment. Specialized field tools and unspecified “weapon systems.” According to the report, two of these incidents occurred at bases in Syria, and three in Iraq. None of these thefts occurred at Forward Operating Base Union 3.[/size]
[size=45]The report indicated that the number of thefts that occurred is unknown, perhaps even to the Pentagon, adding that after more than two months, both the Joint Task Force of Operation Inherent Resolve and the US Central Command have not provided any responses to any of the American website’s questions about the thefts. These weapons are in Iraq and Syria.[/size]
[size=45]The report was considered; The thefts and losses revealed by the American website are just the latest weapons-related accounting problems that the American army is suffering from in Iraq and Syria. In this context, he recalled an investigation conducted by the Pentagon’s Inspector General in 2017, which concluded that $20 million in weapons in Kuwait and Iraq were “at risk of being lost or stolen.” Also, a review conducted in 2020 revealed that US forces working with America’s Syrian “allies” did not accurately account for $715.8 million in equipment purchased for these local agents.[/size]
[size=45]The report continued; The losses related to weapons and ammunition are large, and the army has made great efforts to prevent them in the past, recalling that when the United States withdrew its forces from a site near the city of Kobani in Syria in 2019, the United States launched air strikes on the ammunition it left behind, and the army also The American destroyed equipment and ammunition during its chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan in the year 2021. The report pointed out that, despite this, weeks after the withdrawal, American-made pistols, rifles, grenades, binoculars and night vision goggles spread in weapons stores there, and some of them were exported to Pakistan. The report concluded by saying that since the outbreak of the Israeli war on Gaza, it has become clearer than ever that American bases in the Middle East have become points of attraction for attacks. He continued that American bases in Iraq and Syria are sometimes exposed to continuous attack, including up to Up to four drone and missile strikes within a 24-hour period.[/size]
[size=45]He pointed out that American forces were attacked more than 70 times, 36 times in Iraq, and 37 times in Syria, since October 17. Investigation files obtained by the American website show that there is evidence that American bases also provide tempting targets for criminals.[/size]
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