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Syrian Scientific Studies and Research Center

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Scientific Studies and Research Center
Centre D'Etudes et de Recherches Scientifiques
مركز الدراسات والبحوث العلمية
Agency overview
Formed1971; 53 years ago (1971)
JurisdictionGovernment of Syria
HeadquartersJamraya, Rif Dimashq, Syria
33°20′36″N 36°08′26″E / 33.3434°N 36.1405°E / 33.3434; 36.1405
Employees20,000 (2020)[1]
Agency executives
  • Dr. Amr Armanazi, Director General[2]
  • Dr. Salam Tohme, Deputy Director General[2]
Parent departmentMinistry 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),[3][4] is a Syrian government agency that has the goal of advancing and coordinating scientific and military research activities in the country.[4][5] It works on research and development for the economic and social development of Syria, especially the computerization of government agencies.[5] It is considered to have better technical capacity and equipment than the Syrian universities.[4] 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,[4][5] including ballistic missiles, as well as advanced conventional arms.[6]

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.[2] 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.[7]

History

[edit]

SSRC was established in 1971, following a presidential directive of Nureddin al-Atassi from 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."[8]

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).[8] The SSRC director-general was raised to ministerial rank.[8][9] 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.[8] The highly secretive military facility in Jamraya was established in the 1980s, when Syria was a Soviet ally.[10]

Western intelligence agencies believe that the Syrian procurement structure for biological and chemical weapons uses SSRC as cover.[5][11][4] The center has received the required expertise, technology and materials from Russian sources to produce VX nerve gas.[5]

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.[6] 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.[12]

In 2005, US President George W. Bush issued Executive Order 13382, blocking the ownership and support of weapons of mass destruction, which prohibited United States citizens and residents from doing business with the SSRC.[13] In 2007, the United States Department of the Treasury blocked 3 SSRC subsidiaries: The Institute of Applied Science and Technology (HIAST), the Electronics Institute, and the National Standards and Calibration Laboratory (NSCL).[14]

In 2012, Iranian and North Korean officials and scientists were brought to bases and testing areas to aid in the development and use new types of weapons.[15] In 2014, at the height of the Syrian civil war, CERS resumed the manufacture of long, medium range missiles and rockets at the same rate as before the war.[7] In 2016, the head of Israeli Military Intelligence reported that Syria had resumed manufacture of the M-600 missiles, which has a range of 300 kilometers that was upgraded by CERS.[16]

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.[17]

Organization

[edit]

The CERS is divided into five research institutes and five centers. Research institutes pursue both project oriented and basic scientific research.[2]

Structure (as of 2023)[16][1][2]

[edit]

Locations

[edit]

CERS facilities are located in Jamraya (Institute 1000, Institute 3000, Branch 450, Branch 550), Barzeh (Institute 2000, Institute 5200) and Masyaf (Institute 4000).[2][20] Also, Institute 4000 has centers in al-Rashideen, Aleppo (Branch 340), As-Safira (Project 504, Project 702, Branch 350) and Taqsis (Project 99).[1][7][21]

In 2014, it was revealed that CERS together with Hezbollah established a base in Qusayr, Homs with underground facilities that allegedly store Shahab-1 missiles, delivered to the organization by the IRGC, and natural uranium.[22] According to IAEA research, Syria possesses up to 50 tons of natural uranium.[23] Suspected nuclear storage facilities were also in Marj al-Sultan.[24][23] CERS also had bunkers and storage facilities at the Him Shanshar military installation.[25] In June 2017, a new missile manufacturing facility of CERS was allegedly opened in Wadi Jahannam, Latakia.[26]

By 2020, new ballistic missile production complex of CERS near the city of Baniyas was opened.[27] The complex is similar to the Iranian military’s Parchin complex near Tehran.[27] The Syrian government was actively working with Iran on its construction since 2017.[27] There were also speculations about the production of Zolfaghar missiles, a version of the Fateh-110, which the new factory complexes in Baniyas could reasonably produce.[27]

Linked civil and military institutes

[edit]

Research and development projects

[edit]
See also: List of equipment of the Syrian Army

Infantry weapons

[edit]

Missile systems

[edit]

Missile defense systems

[edit]

Ballistic missiles

[edit]

Bombs

[edit]
  • ODAB thermobaric bomb[44]

Active protection systems

[edit]

Tanks

[edit]

Self-propelled field artillery

[edit]

Logistics vehicles

[edit]

UAVs

[edit]

Foreign cooperation

[edit]

In 2022, it was reported that CERS has a wide-ranging cooperation with countries like Belarus, Russia, Iran, North Korea,[52] China[53][54] and Pakistan.[55][56]

Military activities

[edit]

Development of chemical weapons

[edit]

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.[57]

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.[12]

Sanctions

[edit]

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.[4][58] 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).[59][60]

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.[61][62]

Military actions

[edit]

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.[63]

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.[64][65][66] In May 2013 Rif Dimashq airstrikes Israel hit another important shipment of SSMs to Lebanon.[67]

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.[68] Syrian media reported another Israeli attack in December 2017.[69]

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.[70]

In August 2018, Dr. Aziz Azbar, the head of the SSRC Institute 4000 in Masyaf at that time, was assassinated in a car bombing, allegedly by Israel.[71] He was reported to have been working on a medium and long range missile program.[72] 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.[73]

On 29 February 2020, Turkish drone strikes bombed the SSRC site in As-Safira.[74] A Turkish official claimed the site was used to develop chemical weapons.[75]

On 24 December 2020, an Israeli airstrike near Masyaf destroyed four missile production facilities.[76] The attack reportedly killed six people and destroyed depots and missile production facilities belonging to Iranian militias.[77]

On 8 September 2024, Israeli airstrikes killed 5, injured 19 civilians and made some material damage in the Masyaf area, according to Syrian state news agency SANA.[78] According to the Syrian Ministry of Defense, Israeli Air Force warplanes launched missiles off the Lebanese Akkar Governorate to the south-east towards Tartus, Baniyas, Hama and CERS facilities in Masyaf. The fighting was carried out in 3 missile waves and one drone wave and most of the hostile objects were shot down by the Syrian Air Defence Force.[79]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c "The Weapons Development Industry in Syria (CERS) – Alma's Special Report". Alma Research. 10 August 2023. Retrieved 10 April 2024.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g "Syria's Scientific Studies and Research Center". storymaps.com. 20 October 2020. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
  3. ^ Lappin, Yaakov (14 February 2013). "Making sense of the air strike in Syria". The Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs. Archived from the original on 16 February 2015. Retrieved 11 May 2013.
  4. ^ a b c d e f "Scientific Studies and Research Center". Nuclear Threat Initiative. 17 August 2012. Retrieved 5 May 2013.
  5. ^ a b c d e Special Weapons Agencies. GlobalSecurity. 24 July 2011.
  6. ^ a b Gertz, Bill (23 July 1996). "CIA Suspects Chinese Firm of Syria Missile Aid". The Washington Times.[dead link‍]
  7. ^ a b c d e f "מסמך: כך ממשיך אסד לייצר טילים עבור חיזבאללה". 28 January 2014.
  8. ^ a b c d Shoham, Dany (2002). "Guile, gas and germs: Syria's ultimate weapons". Middle East Quarterly. 9 (3). Philadelphia, Pa.: Middle East Forum: 53–61. Retrieved 8 May 2013.
  9. ^ The Nuclear Tipping Point: Why States Reconsider Their Nuclear Choices. Kurt M. Campbell, Robert J. Einhorn, Mitchell Reiss. p. 92
  10. ^ Profile: Syria's top-secret Jamraya research centre (May 5, 2013), BBC.
  11. ^ Robert Sherman, "Syria's Special Weapons," Federation of American Scientists, 12 May 2000, www.fas.org; "Nuclear, Syria: Proliferation," Jane's CBRN Assessments, 2 July 2008, www.janes.com.
  12. ^ a b Willsher, Kim (2 September 2013). "Syria crisis: French intelligence dossier blames Assad for chemical attack". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 22 December 2015. Retrieved 16 December 2016.
  13. ^ George W. Bush (28 June 2005). "Orden ejecutiva: Bloqueo a las armas de destrucción masiva". La Casa Blanca. Retrieved 11 May 2013.
  14. ^ "3 entidades en el punto de mira del Tesoro por ayudar a la fabricación de armas de destrucción masiva". Departamento del Tesoro de los Estados Unidos. 11 May 2013. Retrieved 4 January 2017.
  15. ^ "Syria Tested Chemical Weapons Systems, Witnesses Say". Der Spiegel. 17 September 2012. Archived from the original on 18 September 2012. Retrieved 18 September 2012.
  16. ^ a b c d Eden Kaduri, Yehoshua Kalisky, Tal Avraham (6 September 2023). "Rebuilding the Syrian Military: The Threat to Israel". INSS Tel Aviv University. Retrieved 25 November 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  17. ^ "Syrian chemical weapons agency sought illicit WMD tech in Germany". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. 18 June 2020.
  18. ^ Yaakov Lappin (14 March 2023). "Syria strike attributed to Israel likely linked to weapons center". Jewish News Syndicate. Retrieved 11 April 2024.
  19. ^ "Syria Missile Overview". Nuclear Threat Initiative. 7 August 2014. Retrieved 10 June 2021.
  20. ^ "Serial Bombings Observed at Masyaf, Syria".
  21. ^ "Al-Safir Missile Base". nti.org. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
  22. ^ "מנהרות וטילים: נחשף בסיס חיזבאללה מחוץ ללבנון" [Tunnels and missiles: Hezbollah base outside Lebanon exposed]. Ynet. 7 April 2016.
  23. ^ a b Follath, Erich (9 January 2015). "Evidence Points to Syrian Push for Nuclear Weapons". Der Spiegel. Archived from the original on 10 January 2015. Retrieved 10 January 2015.
  24. ^ "Marj as-Sultan Uranium Conversion Facility". nti.org. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
  25. ^ White, Data W.; McKenzie, Kenneth F. Jr. (14 April 2018). "Department of Defense Press Briefing by Pentagon Chief Spokesperson Dana W. White and Joint Staff Director Lt. Gen. Kenneth F. McKenzie Jr. in the Pentagon Briefing Room" (Press release). United States Department of Defense. Retrieved 21 April 2018.
  26. ^ "Iran's Missile Milestones".
  27. ^ a b c d Joseph Trevithick (29 June 2019). "New Syrian Missile Factories Look a Lot Like Ones in Iran". The Warzone. Retrieved 11 August 2024.
  28. ^ "National Standards and Calibration Laboratory". nti.org. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
  29. ^ "IDENTIFYING MATERIEL MANUFACTURED IN THE DEMOCRATIC PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF KOREA (DPRK)". Conflict Armament Research. Retrieved 10 April 2024.
  30. ^ "Exploring Iran's Role in Syrian Defence Industry and its Geopolitical Ramifications". Special Eurasia. 8 August 2023. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
  31. ^ a b A Syrian-produced North Korean Type 68 rifle on sale in Yemen. We can notice the Syrian Defense Laboratories logo stamped on it, which we have seen in the past across Syria. (h/t @FighterXwar_ar).
  32. ^ The SSRC has upgraded the Syrian produced Golan S-01 AMR over the past year
  33. ^ "صاروخ فادي-1 هو صاروخ M220 السوري عيار 220mm صاروخ فادي-2 هو صاروخ M302 السوري عيار 302mm الصواريخ من إنتاج مؤسسة معامل الدفاع للجيش العربي السوري والبحوث العلمية، الشهيد الدكتور عزيز إسبر مدير مركز البحوث العلمية في مصياف كان يعمل على تطويرها قبل اغتيا...له المو...ساد عام 2018".
  34. ^ William M. Arkin, Divining Victory: Airpower in the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah War (2007) p. 35 ISBN 978-1585661688
  35. ^ Stijn Mitzer, Joost Oliemans (3 October 2021). "Modern Wartime Designs: The Syrian Shams MRL". Oryx Blog. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  36. ^ Gregory Waters (31 August 2021). "They also have Golan-65 (pic 1 on top of the 250), Golan-250, Golan-300, and Golan-400, so quite a variety of sizes". Twitter. Retrieved 2 March 2024.
  37. ^ "Gulan 1000 MLRS used by Syrian army against Daesh". 19 November 2018. Archived from the original on 22 November 2018. Retrieved 22 November 2018.
  38. ^ Gregory Waters (18 July 2019). "The Lion and The Eagle: The Syrian Arab Army's Destruction and Rebirth". Middle East Institute. Retrieved 20 September 2022.
  39. ^ a b "ARES Research Report No.2: Iranian Falaq-1 and Falaq-2 Rockets in Syria – Armament Research Services". armamentresearch.com. 11 May 2014. Retrieved 30 September 2017.
  40. ^ "Geopolitics". 26 November 2012. Archived from the original on 16 October 2014. Retrieved 14 November 2014.
  41. ^ a b c d e f "الترسانة الصاروخية السورية: من مفاجئات أي حرب مقبلة..."
  42. ^ "Zelzal-1 Artillery Rocket".
  43. ^ "The Iranian Precision Weapon Vision Expands to Hezbollah's Short-Range Rockets". Alma Research Center. 18 February 2024. Retrieved 6 October 2024.
  44. ^ Aerospace systems
  45. ^ "T-72 Shafrah". Tank Encyclopedia. 13 April 2017. Retrieved 10 August 2023.
  46. ^ Arturo Giusti (5 March 2022). "130 mm M-46 Field Gun on IVECO TRAKKER and Mercedes-Benz Actros Chassis". Tank Encyclopedia. Retrieved 10 April 2023.
  47. ^ [https://x.com/ArmedSyrian/status/1808953259408732650?t=BVufnCrABpxpxgEL2uhfnQ&s=19 ظهر في العرض العسكري لسلاح المدفعية التابع لحزب الله؛ المدفع ذاتي الحركة M-46 من عيار 130 ملم هذا المدفع تم تعديله في مركز البحوث العلمية السوريةالحزب اصبح لديه عتاد عسكري نوعي و افضلن جيوش دول بحالها.حماكم و نصركم الله.]
  48. ^ "ARAB REVOLTS & REVOLUTIONS: SYRIA (1)". 13 June 2011.
  49. ^ International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) (14 February 2018). "The Military Balance 2018". The Military Balance. 118. Routledge.
  50. ^ David Cenciotti (15 August 2012). "Syrian regime's drone workshop with Saeqeh UAVs (and evidence of Iranian support) captured by the rebels in Aleppo". The Aviationist. Retrieved 17 September 2024.
  51. ^ Ali Haj Suleiman, Husam Hezaber (27 February 2024). "The Syrian regime is stepping up its use of suicide drones". Al Jazeera English. Retrieved 28 August 2024.
  52. ^ "Arms Control and Proliferation Profile: Syria". Arms Control Association. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
  53. ^ Is China Increasing Its Military Presence in Syria?
  54. ^ "New Chinese aid for Syria sets off alarms in Israel". Breaking Defense. 28 July 2022. Retrieved 10 August 2024.
  55. ^ Danny Makki (23 August 2023). "The quiet rise of Pakistani influence in Syria". Middle East Eye. Retrieved 17 December 2023.
  56. ^ Ammad Malik (19 January 2019). "Pakistan and Syria: Rebuilding a Fractured Relationship". The Diplomat. Retrieved 18 August 2024.
  57. ^ "Obama Says Syrian Chemical Arms Use a Challenge to Security". Archived from the original on 30 August 2013. Retrieved 14 April 2018.
  58. ^ Bush, George W. (28 June 2005). "Executive Order: Blocking Property of Weapons of Mass Destruction Proliferators and Their Supporters". The White House. Retrieved 11 May 2013.
  59. ^ "Three Entities Targeted by Treasury for Supporting Syria's WMD Proliferation". US Department of the Treasury. 4 January 2007. Retrieved 11 May 2013.
  60. ^ "Facilities".
  61. ^ Fabian, Jordan; Lane, Sylvan (24 April 2017). "US sanctions Syria for chemical weapons attack". The Hill. Retrieved 27 April 2017.
  62. ^ "US imposes new sanctions on Syrian officials over chemical attack". Deutsche Welle. 24 April 2017. Retrieved 27 April 2017.
  63. ^ Lappin, Yaakov (15 September 2010). "Syria arms 'institute' must be stopped, official says". Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 11 May 2013.
  64. ^ Assad fumes as Israel admits Syria air strike. The Express Tribune
  65. ^ Israeli raid in Syria reportedly damaged research site. The Times Of Israel
  66. ^ Israeli strike into Syria said to damage research site. New York Times. 3 February 2013
  67. ^ Evans, Dominic; Holmes, Oliver (5 May 2013). "Israel strikes Syria, says targeting Hezbollah arms". Reuters. Retrieved 11 May 2013.
  68. ^ "Israeli jets said to hit chemical weapons, missile site in Syria". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 14 April 2018.
  69. ^ "Syrian media says Israel struck near Damascus for second time in days". Jerusalem Post. 5 December 2017.
  70. ^ O'Connor, Sean (16 April 2018). "Western allies target Syrian assets". Jane's 360. Retrieved 20 April 2018.
  71. ^ "Top Middle East intel official says Mossad behind killing of Syrian rocket chief". www.timesofisrael.com.
  72. ^ Salami, Daniel (5 August 2018). "Report: Syrian scientist involved in Iranian missile program assassinated". Ynetnews.
  73. ^ "Satellite images taken after Israeli strikes reveal level of damage on Syrian sites". 22 January 2019. Archived from the original on 21 February 2019. Retrieved 20 February 2019.
  74. ^ "45 قتيلا من قوات النظام بقصف طائرات مسيرة وحربية وقصف مدفعي تركي.. وصواريخ أرض-أرض تستهدف ريف حلب". SOHR. 29 February 2020. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
  75. ^ "Syrian chemical warfare facility destroyed in overnight Turkish strike: report". I24. 29 February 2020. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
  76. ^ "Satellite images show airstrike damage to weapons facilities in Syria". www.timesofisrael.com.
  77. ^ "At Least Six Killed by Israeli Missile Strikes in Syria, Monitor Says". Haaretz. 25 December 2020.
  78. ^ "The number of martyrs from Israeli aggression on Masyaf rises to 18 and 17 wounded".
  79. ^ "Syrian officials say 5 killed, 19 injured in alleged Israel strikes". The Times of Israel. 8 September 2024. Retrieved 9 September 2024.
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