Hezbollah Snipers Still Fighting Syrian Opposition In Jebel El Zawiya (North Syria)

Hezbollah snipers fighting against an opposition rebel enclave located in Jebel el Zawiya, south of Idlib.

The sniper rifles are of the AM50. Iranian production and a copy of the Austrian “Steyr HS .50” sniper rifle. Hundreds of Steyr rifles were sold to Iran in 2004 with the approval of the Austrian government. Since then, the Iranians copied and produced their own version. The Iranian rifles, based on the Austrian rifle and the original Austrian version, are now found everywhere Iranians and their proxies operate throughout the Middle East.

The Iranian version is called AM50 Sayyad. With a caliber of 0.5 inch, effective for over 1600 yards.

In recent years, as part of Hezbollah’s military force building, the sniping profession has developed greatly. During the Syrian civil war, Hezbollah snipers gained extensive experience on the battlefield. Hezbollah’s two recent attacks on IDF soldiers from the Lebanese border (July 2020 and November 2020) used sniper rifles attempting to accurately hit an IDF soldier.