Kurdish activists have posted photos of Marines firing stinger missiles amid Turkey\u2019s current bombing campaign of Kurdish-held Afrin, Syria.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A series of photos was posted to social media by an account allegedly linked to a supporter of the Kurdistan Workers\u2019 Party, or PKK, showing Marines firing the FIM-92 Stinger. The PKK is an internationally designated terrorist group, which has carried out a bloody insurgency in Turkey for decades. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The photos are an interesting development in the latest crisis to unfold in Syria\u2019s never-ending civil war. The Kurdish militants have never been supplied with surface to air missiles or even sophisticated anti-tank rockets beyond the standard rocket-propelled grenade.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But Kurdish propaganda has been known to highlight anti-tank guided missile shots and other sophisticated weaponry as a show of deterrence to Turkish forces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe YPG has used ATGM diplomacy during times of crisis with Turkey,\u201d Aaron Stein, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, previously told Military Times.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
While the Stinger is no ATGM, it would be a major threat to Turkish jets pounding Kurdish position in Afrin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Why the militants are using Marines in their propaganda is anyone\u2019s guess. But, the Corps has built a strong bond with Kurdish fighters assisting Syrian Democratic Forces in northern Syria, where Marines from the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit provided artillery support.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The pictures may also serve as a reminder of U.S. support of the ragtag fighters, or simply playing off the ignorance of those who can\u2019t tell the difference between the quasi similar digital green patterns of the Kurdish fighters and Marines in full combat gear. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Stinger, which has seen service in the U.S. armed forces since 1981, is a shoulder fired Man-Portable Air-Defense System, or MANPADS. The Stinger is a surface-to-air missile that uses infrared homing to blast aircraft out of the sky.<\/p>\n\n\n\t