Direct proof of use
Bellingcat's open-source survey of Syrian rebel anti-tank guided missile use lists the 9K115 Metis among ATGMs used during the Syrian Civil War and identifies a 9K115 Metis in Idlib Governorate on 22 February 2014. The same survey describes rebel ATGM use as a visually documented battlefield pattern that grew after opposition groups captured government stocks and received external support.
Oryx separately describes Free Syrian Army fighters striking Abu ad-Duhor airbase with a 9M131 / 9K115-2 Metis-M ATGM on 7 March 2012, damaging an already inoperational Syrian Arab Air Force MiG-23MS. That incident shows Metis-M use against a fixed airfield target rather than an armored vehicle.
Sources: Bellingcat Syrian Rebel ATGM Survey, Oryx Abu ad-Duhor Airbase
Timeline
The earliest dated Metis-M incident found for this record is the 7 March 2012 Abu ad-Duhor airbase strike reported by Oryx. Bellingcat later identifies a 9K115 Metis in Idlib Governorate on 22 February 2014 and places Metis-family systems inside the wider rebel ATGM evidence base.
By December 2014, Small Arms Survey listed 9K115 Metis and 9K115-2 Metis-M systems among guided anti-tank weapons reportedly held by Syrian anti-government armed groups, giving a research baseline for possession by opposition forces during the war.
Sources: Oryx Abu ad-Duhor Airbase, Bellingcat Syrian Rebel ATGM Survey, Small Arms Survey Guided Light Weapons
Narrative
The Metis family appeared in Syria as part of a broader opposition ATGM inventory dominated by Soviet and Russian-origin weapons. Bellingcat notes that Syrian Arab Army depots contained large stocks of armored vehicles and anti-tank weapons before the war, and that rebels obtained anti-tank systems through captured government stores as well as later foreign support.
In rebel service, the Metis filled the same portable guided anti-armor role as other tube-launched ATGMs, but the documented target set was broader than tanks. The Abu ad-Duhor case involved a grounded aircraft at a besieged airbase, while Bellingcat's survey discusses ATGM use against armored vehicles, fixed positions, helicopters, and other battlefield targets across the Syrian Civil War.
The sources do not establish a single operator chain for all Metis-family weapons in Syria. For this page, the supported side is opposition and anti-government forces, with specific attribution only where sources name Free Syrian Army fighters or Syrian anti-government armed groups.
Sources: Bellingcat Syrian Rebel ATGM Survey, Oryx Abu ad-Duhor Airbase, Small Arms Survey Guided Light Weapons
