9th Armoured Division (Syria)

The division was established in 1970, and was originally called the 9th Infantry Division, although according to its composition it was actually an armored division. In 1973 it was heavily engaged during the October War, and in the Valley of Tears.Kenneth Pollack, 'Arab Armies at War', University of Nebraska Press, 2001. The division participated in attack on the Golan Heights at the beginning of the war. It attacked the center of the plateau, alongside the 5th Division which attacked the southern sector and the 7th Division which attacked the north.

Under the division's command were the 52nd Mechanized Brigade (with 41 tanks) in the northern part of the sector and the 33rd Mechanized Brigade (with 41 tanks) in the southern part of the sector. Behind the first tier brigades were two second tier brigades; The 43rd Armored Brigade (with 95 tanks) and the 51st Armored Brigade (with 95 tanks), which was attached to the division. The division was commanded during the war by Hasan Turkmani.{{cite book|author=Hanna Batatu|title=Syria's Peasantry, the Descendants of Its Lesser Rural Notables, and Their Politics|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4_Cvhg3YHIoC&pg=PA228|access-date=27 March 2013|year=1999|publisher=Princeton University Press|isbn=978-0-691-00254-5|pages=228}}

In April 1976, it was announced by Kamal Jumblatt, leader of the Lebanese National Movement, that the 91st Armoured Brigade had entered Lebanon.Marius Deeb, Syria's Terrorist War on Lebanon and the Peace Process, Palgrave Macmillan, 2003, {{ISBN|1403980969}}, 9781403980960, 18. This was in addition to other Syrian forces that had entered previously.

The 9th Armored Division served in the 1991 Gulf War as the Arab Joint Forces Command North reserve and saw little action.Schwarzkopf, It doesn't take a hero, Bantam Books, 1993, 467-9. In 2001 Richard Bennett estimated that its brigades included the 43rd and 91st Armored Brigades and the 52nd Mechanized Brigade. He wrote that it was part of the 1st Corps, which covered from Golan Heights, the fortified zone and south to Der'a near the Jordanian border.

Since the start of the war, 9th Division was engaged in Idlib Governorate clashes (June 2012–April 2013). The 52nd Armored Brigade was reported in Der'aa in southern Syria in May 2013.{{cite web|url=http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/168052|title=Largest Syrian Brigade Nears Breaking Point|work=Arutz Sheva}} 9th Division took part in the 2015 Southern Syria offensive, which resulted into stalemate.{{cite web|url=http://archicivilians.com/2015/02/11/map-the-military-situation-in-north-of-daraa-province-southwest-of-rifdimashq-province-february-11-2015/|title=Map: The Military Situation in North of Daraa Province & SouthWest of RifDimashq Province - February 12, 2015|work=archicivilians|access-date=13 February 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150212201353/http://archicivilians.com/2015/02/11/map-the-military-situation-in-north-of-daraa-province-southwest-of-rifdimashq-province-february-11-2015/|archive-date=12 February 2015|url-status=usurped}} In June 2015, it was involved in Daraa and As-Suwayda offensive. The 9th Division alongside pro-government militias repelled major rebel offensive.{{cite web|url=http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2015/06/clashes-continue-army-airbase-syria-sweida-150612124929754.html |title=Syria clashes rage over army airbase in Sweida |publisher=Al Jazeera |date=12 June 2015 |access-date=12 June 2015 }}

It was reported in October 2015 that "Syrian armed opposition factions seized the strategic Tel Ahmar in the northern countryside of Quneitra on Saturday, following violent clashes with government forces. The capture of Tel Ahmar comes days after opposition factions seized the Fourth Division of the Syrian army’s Brigade 91 in the same offensive, which aims to break the siege on Western Ghouta."{{cite web|url=https://syrianobserver.com/news/28767/opposition_seizes_strategic_tel_ahmar_advances_western_ghouta.html|title=Opposition Seizes Strategic Tel Ahmar, Advances on Western Ghouta|first=Madar |last=al-Youm |website=The Syrian Observer|date=5 October 2015 }} Between November 2017 and January 2018, the division's units took part in battles on the outskirts of Damascus (Battle of Harasta).{{cite news|title=Pictures: Syrian Army floods east Damascus with massive reinforcements to annihilate jihadist offensive|url=https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/pictures-syrian-army-floods-east-damascus-massive-reinforcements-annihilate-jihadist-offensive/|work=al-Masdar|date=1 January 2018|access-date=1 January 2018|archive-date=16 September 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190916134530/https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/pictures-syrian-army-floods-east-damascus-massive-reinforcements-annihilate-jihadist-offensive/|url-status=dead}} During August 2021, they participated in the Daraa offensive, which led to extensive occupations east and west of the city of Dara'a in favor of the Syrian government forces.{{cite news |title=مقتل شاب برصاص قوات النظام في درعا البلد ومطالبات أهلية بإفراغ المنطقة من أهلها وسكانها بعد تصعيد قوات النظام الأخير |url=https://www.syriahr.com/مقتل-شاب-برصاص-قوات-النظام-في-درعا-البل/443694/|language=Arabic |access-date=29 July 2021 |publisher=SOHR |date=29 July 2021}}

{{reflist}}

• Laffin, John (1985) [1982]. Arab Armies of the Middle East Wars 1948-73. Osprey Publishing Ltd. {{ISBN|0-85045-451-4}}.

{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2017}}

• https://www.cia.gov/readingroom/docs/CIA-RDP79T00975A030900010090-9.pdf - NAtional Intelligence Daily (Cable) p11

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Category:Armoured divisions of Syria

Category:1970 establishments in Syria

Category:Military units and formations established in 1970

Category:Military units and formations disestablished in 2024