The 7th Mechanized Division ( ar, فرقة المشاة الآلية السابعة) is a division of the Syrian Arab Army, currently engaged in the
Syrian Civil War.
History
The division, formed as 7th Infantry Division, was a key component of the Syrian attack force in the 1973
Yom Kippur War
The Yom Kippur War, also known as the Ramadan War, the October War, the 1973 Arab–Israeli War, or the Fourth Arab–Israeli War, was an armed conflict fought from October 6 to 25, 1973 between Israel and a coalition of Arab states led by Egy ...
, involved in some of the heaviest fighting in the Golan Heights, especially in the aptly named '
Valley of Tears
The Valley of Tears ( he, עֵמֶק הַבָּכָא, ''Emek HaBakha'') is the name given to an area in the Golan Heights after it became the site of a major battle in the 1973 Yom Kippur War, known as the Valley (or Vale) of Tears Battle, w ...
'. The division, with its attached armoured brigade, lost a great number of tanks when trying on many accounts to rush the Israeli defenses.
Omar Abrash was serving as the division commander.
Although Syrian division had a nominal strength of around 10,000 men, 200 tanks, 72 artillery pieces and similar numbers of
SAMs and anti-aircraft guns, the 7th Infantry Division had only 80% of its tanks and APCs during the war. Furthermore, although designated as an infantry division, the division was essentially mechanised.
In 1973, the division's equipment, organisation, tactics, and training were virtually identical to those of the
5th Infantry Division during its
action in Jordan.
Because of the extensive losses suffered by the division during the
battle of the Valley of Tears, one of the division's brigades had to be pulled out of action for 3 days before being reorganized as a battalion.
In August 2012, Mohamed Moussa al-Khairat, reported as the division commander, defected to Jordan.
References
Divisions of Syria
Infantry divisions
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