FN SCAR H in Kenya???

[PFCLEE11B]

http://www.foxnews.com/

This is still a sad day for America but I could not help but notice that the headline story about an attack by al-Shabab in a mall. Find it interesting that even Kenyan forces can get proper battle rifles, see at least 4 in the picture with EOTECH's...

 

[Fishbed77]

I noticed the same thing. Those guys have some pretty slick rifles.

 

[gspn]

Ha! I noticed that too...definitely did a double take. My first thought was that he must be from one of their higher tier units...but i could be wrong...I don't know squat about their military or police. I did see another picture with what looked to be a police officer firing basically blindly around a corner while making a funny face.

 

[nwilliams]

I saw the image earlier today and was also surprised. I never imagined the Kenyan military would be using the SCAR.

 

[Robert]

Stick to the rifle, leave global politics out of it as they are off topic.

 

[CA Raider]

I know that specific mall in Nairobi very well. I have been in there a lot and I have escorted people through there for security reasons. Glad I was not there when things went wrong.

Judging by the pix in the media (never reliable), it appears that the Kenyans scrambled all of their men to the incident as soon as the radio distress call went out. That's why you see some men in uniforms (GSU), while others are undercover and holding various automatic weapons and pistols. You are seeing military units mixed up with undercover policemen and Flying Squad police units.

The mall is a very expensive one and only rich Kenyans go there. But it is very popular with tourists - no doubt that's why Al Shabaab chose it as a target. The Nakumatt supermarket is on the ground floor, if I recall right. It's a very large supermarket that also contains a photo store and a bank outlet. That is where the gunmen are now holed up with the hostages.

CA R

 

[jim in Anchorage]

Good picture of the Kenyan military guns-

http://news.yahoo.com/kenya-minister-says-59-killed-mall-attack-094537020.html

 

[ugaarguy]

Find it interesting that even Kenyan forces can get proper battle rifles,

So there are a couple of guys with FN SCAR-H rifles. If you look at the yahoo image gallery that Jim in Anchorage linked you'll see a very high percentage of well worn HK G3 rifles. The SCARs are very likely replacements for HK G3s that have finally been taken out of service. The guys in the most squared away uniforms in those pics are also carrying G3s. The SCAR-H and the current group of 7.62 NATO AR-10 based rifles are the last of the battle rifles. Battle rifles are nothing more than niche firearms now. I can only imagine that import pricing and support from FN in Europe is better in an African country than pricing and support would be from a US based company.

 

[Calhoun]

Even though this is in Rifle Country, I noted lots of CZ 75B's in the Yahoo linked article also.

 

[CA Raider]

the sad thing seems to be a lack of very good funding for the security units in Africa. this is part of the reason why you see a wide mixture in weapons. different units operating with different arms, some old and some newer. what was particularly painful for me to watch in the pictures of the mall incident were photo's of Kenyan policeman lying on the floor of the mall - with bullets through their stomachs. those men had no bulletproof armor. i hope they were evacuated OK.

Ca R

 

[Owen]

A couple of different possibilities on how they got there.

1.) Direct sales from FN. The SCAR-H is made in Belgium, and the EU's arms export laws are pretty easy compared to the US. Its common for thrid world countries to mimic what the the Special ops troops in the first world are doing, even if its just for a small fraction of the troops, basically for bragging rights.

2.) Indirect Sales though foreign military sales. When you hear about foreign military aid, much of the time Uncle Sam gives the country a checkbook, and a catalog of US military equipment they can buy. That's why Egypt had M1 Abrams tanks in the recent scuffle there.

3.) Illegal Arms Trafficking

It should also be noted that as far as Africa goes, Kenya is pretty squared away.

 

[twofifty]

finger discipline

The equipment certainly varies between the various units, but the pictures show that trigger finger discipline while under fire is the common denominator.

 

[Girodin]

I did see another picture with what looked to be a police officer firing basically blindly around a corner while making a funny face.

If this is the image to that you were refering to, I don't think it clearly shows a guy firing blindly.

View attachment 678242

There are a lot of what one would expect to see, G3s, FN hi powers, and AKs. I wonder how wide spread the SCAR with eotechs are.

 

[CA Raider]

any time you are looking at an African unit - it's going to look a bit "confused" compared to the professional images we see from western response teams. My guess is that the guy leading the military team in that picture is actually one of their counter-terrorism squad ... he's just in civilian clothes because of a rapid response. The look on his face is probably strictly a photo thing - just the moment it was taken. it would be nice if someone had handed him a bulletproof vest. but this kind of stuff is typical of Africa. and as someone observed, their trigger finger discipline is good.

i like the fact that the #3 guy is looking upwards. that mall has about 5-6 stories, and there is a huge central open-air area that goes from the ground floor to the ceiling. so it's good that they were checking other levels.

it's not an easy situation. the terrorists were well armed and a crowded mall is a very emotional situation. we are not hearing the screams and the clacking of AK-47 fire.

it's a minor miracle there were not 300 killed - instead of 59 killed and 300 injured. when terrorists storm into a major mall, the possible casualties could easily have been 10X higher.

CA R

 

[nathan]

Those HK G 3s pack a punch without a doubt. We hope to see this thing end soon. Waiting for the evening news to come up in a few minutes/.

 

[dfariswheel]

And in one picture of some troops on a truck one in the center was armed with an M4.

Point is, most any countries special ops and response teams will get the best equipment they can afford and acquire no matter where it's from.
A look at some recent pictures of Russian response teams and teams from most any county shows them using a lot of American gear, including holsters, web gear, armor, and sights.

 

[CA Raider]

this incident is still going on. that means things are tougher there than it "appears" from the press. Kenya has shut down the media - they are getting smart about that these days. hope those Kenyan guys are OK. will have to say a prayer for them. you have to appreciate the irony of all of this. those Kenyan army guys and policemen dont get paid much money. they cant even afford to shop at the mall where they are now risking their lives :-(

CA R