A screenshot from the video
The Russian military has deployed servicemen with modern 9K333 Verba MANPADs at its positions in the Eastern Ghouta region near Damascus.
The missiles will be used to protect positions of the Russian servicemen monitoring the de-escalation zone from DIY combat drones as well as other aircraft.
Small drones have become a real threat after ISIS and several other terrorist groups in Syria and Iraq managed to arm them with DIY small bombs.
The video above was taken in Damascus. In the video we see that the missiles were flown to the Damascus International Airport and then transported via trucks to the Russian positions at Eastern Ghouta.
The video also showed the launch of one missile but it was not clear whether it was for training purposes or if it did target an enemy drone.
The 9K333 Verba is a modern Russian man-portable air-defense system. The missile has flight ceiling of 4.5km and is equipped with three-channel optical seeker with ultraviolet, near-infrared, mid-infrared sensors which allows it to be used against targets with very small thermal footprints such as small electric drones. This also decreases the chance of disruption from countermeasures such as flares and lasers that attempt to blind missiles.
