Popular Levy (Niru-ye Sāzmān-e Basij-e Suren)

Popular Levy (Niru-ye Sāzmān-e Basij-e Suren)
Emblem of the Popular Levy, adopted in 1692 AN following the incorporation of the Suren into the Raspur Pact.
Country	Suren
Founded	1686 AN
Disbanded	1718 AN
Branches	Defence Force
Headquarters	Surenshahr
Leadership
Surenšāh	Mitradokht of Suren
Euramehr Arteshbod	Ardashir Ghul
Manpower
Military age	18–65 years old
Conscription	Yes
Active personnel	424,985

The Popular Levy (Niru-ye Sāzmān-e Basij-e Suren) was the primary armed force of the Suren Confederacy from its establishment in 1686 AN to its reorganisation into the Surenid Armed Forces in the period 1718 AN – 1720 AN.

Establishment

Order of Battle

• Popular Levy (Niru-ye Sāzmān-e Basij-e Suren)
  • Staff of the Euramehr Arteshbod
    • Surenshahr Defence Brigade
  • Commissariat of the Popular Levy
    • Quartermaster's Regiment
    • Medical Corps
      • Medical Regiment
      • Veterinary Regiment
      • Dental Regiment
    • Logistics Corps
      • Ordnance Regiment
      • Supply Regiment
      • 1st Transport (Motorised Wagon) Regiment
      • 2nd Transport (Camel) Regiment
      • 3rd Transport (Mule & Onager) Regiment
    • Electrical and Mechanical Engineering Regiment
  • Inspectorate of the Popular Levy
    • Adjutant-General’s Regiment
    • Signals Regiment
    • Training Regiment
  • State Gendarmerie (Žāndārmirī-ye Dowlati)
    • Aspadana Division
      • 9th Gendarmes Brigade
      • 10th Gendarmes Brigade
    • Kapavia Division
      • 3rd Gendarmes Brigade
      • 4th (Yemin Zoka) Gendarmes Brigade
    • Norasht Division
      • 5th Gendarmes Brigade
      • 6th Gendarmes Brigade
    • Suren Division
      • 1st Gendarmes Brigade
      • 2nd Gendarmes Brigade
    • Trucial Isles Division
      • 11th Gendarmes Brigade
      • 12th Gendarmes Brigade
    • Zjand Basseri Division
      • 7th Gendarmes Brigade
      • 8th Gendarmes Brigade
    • Ghur Division
      • 13th Gendarmes Brigade
      • 14th Gendarmes Brigade
  • Lashkar-e-Yazatá
  • Naval Forces of the Popular Levy (Niru-ye Daryâyi-e Sāzmān-e Basij-e Suren)
    • Naval Command Unit
      • Naval Basic Training Centre
      • Maritime Surveillance Centre
    • Suren Hydrographic Service
  • Aerospace Forces of the Popular Levy (Niru-ye Havâfazây-e Sāzmān-e Basij-e Sureni)
    • Kara Air Station
    • Mehrshahr Air Station
    • Suren Aviation Industries
    • Suren Central Manufacturing Organisation

Land Forces

Each year the Suren Confederacy mandated the recruitment of one percent of the working-age population into the so-called Popular Levy (Niru-ye Sāzmān-e Basij-e Suren) for a four year mobilisation period, representing a total force available under arms of approximately 216,416 men. Of the established strength of the Popular Levy therefore an eighth of the force will be in cantonments undergoing their basic training for six months, while a further eighth of the force will be out on the frontiers learning fieldcraft and patrolling for a further six months. At the completion of their training year the levies would be assigned to one of the fifteen Tips (Brigades) of the State Gendarmerie (Žāndārmirī-ye Dowlati) for two years of service as mounted-light infantry and auxiliary policemen, with troops in their third year of service being responsible for the further training and discipline of new inductees into the regiments of the tip. After two years in the Gendarmerie, the levies finish their period of mobilisation by being transferred to one of the depot regiments tasked with logistics or works duties in the run up to their demobilisation period.

All individuals who complete their initial mobilisation period with the Popular Levy are permitted to return to civilian, being permitted to keep their service rifle, a tent, a silver tea set gifted by the state, four camels from the herds of the paramount chiefs of their home province, and any captives they took while on active service. In spite of being permitted to return to civilian life these levies are retained by the government on the Active Reserve until their forty-fifth birthday whereupon they are transferred to the Inactive Reserve in which they would remain until their sixty-fifth birthday. The distinction between active and inactive reserves being in their assignment and the conditions under which they would be called up. While members of the active reserve might be made subject to a patriotic service mobilisation order at any time, subject to a decree by the Shahrbān of their home province in peace time, and typically be assigned to a mobile fighting formation, the inactive reserve would only be called upon by the central government in time of war with a foreign power and even then typically be only be assigned to a static infantry formation or to the depot regiments tasked with combat support services. To prepare for future war, the Popular Levies are frequently indoctrinated about the spiritual benefits of martyrdom.

Each shahrestan has two brigades of Gendarmes under the command of the Sartip (Major-General) appointed by the Shahbanu and responsible for the defence of the assigned province. A further reinforced brigade is responsible for the defence of the main capital, Surenshahr, and the royal palaces under the direct command of the Euramehr Arteshbod.

Land Equipment

Name	Origin	Type	Quantity	Image	Notes
Tanks
OAH Panssarsepâh IV Type 1 Zolfaqaar	Zeed	Main battle tank	25		Surrendered by Zeed 1701 AN
OAH Panssarsepâh IV Type 2 Safir	Zeed	Self-propelled anti-aircraft gun	58		Surrendered by Zeed 1701 AN
OAH Panssarsepâh IV Type 3 Mobarez	Zeed	Self-propelled air defence	51		Surrendered by Zeed 1701 AN
OAH Panssarsepâh IV Type 4 Grad	Zeed	Multiple rocket launcher	46		Surrendered by Zeed 1701 AN
OAH Panssarsepâh IV Type 5 Tosan	Zeed	Infantry fighting vehicle	48		Surrendered by Zeed 1701 AN
OAH Panssarsepâh IV Type 6 Boraq	Zeed	Command vehicle	3		Surrendered by Zeed 1701 AN
Pakao	Krasnocoria	Main battle tank	4		Recovered from Port Ulje 1690 AN
Pero	Krasnocoria	Light tank	1		Recovered from Port Ulje 1690 AN
Armoured fighting vehicles
Rz.Kfz 1714 Razkampfwagen	Rusjar Mechanical Machine-Building Plant	Armoured Patrol Vehicle	1,096		2,694 ordered in 1714 AN. 10,000 ordered in 1718 AN.
9A1 - Six-Axle Unarmoured Ordinance Carrier 9A1 'Grom 'Hailstorm' Guided Missile C-RAM" 9A1Б 'Shkval 'Storm' C-RAM	Zeed	Light Armoured Vehicle	16 8 8		Surrendered by Zeed 1701 AN
OAH Ingilisi F100	Zeed	Armoured personnel carrier	27		Surrendered by Zeed 1701 AN
OAH Ingilisi F101	Zeed	Command vehicle	2		Surrendered by Zeed 1701 AN
OAH Ingilisi F102	Zeed	Wheeled anti-tank vehicle	50		Surrendered by Zeed 1701 AN
OAH Ingilisi F103	Zeed	Ambulance	29		Surrendered by Zeed 1701 AN
OAH Ingilisi F104	Zeed	Armoured transport	484		Surrendered by Zeed 1701 AN
OAH Ingilisi F105	Zeed	Combat bulldozer	15		Surrendered by Zeed 1701 AN
OAH Ingilisi F106	Zeed	Rough terrain forklift	8		Surrendered by Zeed 1701 AN
Vuk	Krasnocoria	Armoured Fighting Vehicle	2		Recovered from Port Ulje 1690 AN
S1	Krasnocoria	Armored Personnel Carrier	3		Recovered from Port Ulje 1690 AN
SMFP 3000	Krasnocoria	Armoured Recovery Vehicle	4		Recovered from Port Ulje 1690 AN
Field guns
80mm field gun	Shireroth	Field gun	2		Recovered from Port Ulje 1690 AN
M1681 105 mm howitzer	Javelin Industries	Towed Artillery (Howitzer)	200		Obtained under the Fontainebleau Accords of 1691 AN
Support vehicles
SMFP 1000	Krasnocoria	Off-road vehicle	9		Recovered from Port Ulje 1690 AN
SMFP 2000	Krasnocoria	Tank transporter	7		Recovered from Port Ulje 1690 AN
Snatch Land Rover	various manufacturers	Utility Patrol Vehicle	25,000		Obtained under the Fontainebleau Accords of 1691 AN
Electronic Systems
ES-27 Froyalan	Gaelen Technologies Corporation	Synthetic Aperture / Moving Target Indication (SAR/MTI) radar	400		Purchased for Suren by the Benacian Union, 1704 AN. Delivered 1706 AN – 1709 AN. Qty 333x assigned to Norasht Frontier Berm.

Name	Origin	Type	Quantity	Image	Notes
Handguns
Yurish KV-1	Krasnocoria	Pistol	952		Recovered from Port Ulje 1690 AN Standard service pistol.
Yurish KV-2	Krasnocoria	Pistol	604		Recovered from Port Ulje 1690 AN Standard service pistol.
Yurish KV-3	Krasnocoria	Pistol	426		Recovered from Port Ulje 1690 AN Used by special forces.
M1690 machine pistol (9x19mm)	Mishalan Arsenal	Machine pistol	8,000		Obtained under the Fontainebleau Accords of 1691 AN
Submachine-guns
M1656 submachine-gun (9x19mm)	National Qullqa System	Submachine gun	40,000		Obtained under the Fontainebleau Accords of 1692 AN; x10,000 transferred to the Armistice Army of Zeed, 1701 AN.
Rifles
M1591 7.62 mm Rifle	National Qullqa System	Bolt action service rifle	400,000		Received as military aid from Nouvelle Alexandrie, 1694 AN; x100,000 transferred to the Armistice Army of Zeed, 1701 AN; Issued to conscripts of the Popular Levy.
SA1680	FIH Technologies	assault rifle	10,000		Purchased from Floria, 1716 AN. Issued to the Lashkar-e-Yazatá, 1718 AN.
Yurish KA 7.62×39 mm assault rifle	Krasnocoria	Assault rifle	80,769		Recovered from Port Ulje 1690 AN; 80,057 received from Zeed, 1701 AN; Standard rifle for regular forces.
Yurish KAS 7.62×39 mm assault rifle	Krasnocoria	Assault rifle	838		Recovered from Port Ulje 1690 AN Used by special forces.

Naval forces

The Naval Forces of the Popular Levy (Niru-ye Daryâyi-e Sāzmān-e Basij-e Suren) was established on 05.II.1688 AN with the formation of a brigade level Naval Command Unit, based at the port of Kara, and the procurement of thirteen surplus warships (four frigates and nine corvettes) from Sanama. Future expansion plans will revolve around similar procurements and the domestic production of auxiliary vessels and patrol craft. The doctrine of the naval forces focuses upon the defence of immediate coastal waters and the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of the Confederacy through regular patrolling, the charting of the coastline and off-shore waters, and the preparation of a layered asymmetrical defence. The Naval Basic Training Centre was established at Kara, subordinate to the Naval Command Unit on 10.II.1688 while a Maritime Surveillance Centre was established at Bandar-e Zinjibar on 13.II.1688 to collate reports of shipping movements on the Gulf of Zinjibar received from the State Gendarmerie.

The Suren Hydrographic Service (SHS) was previously established on 19.I.1688 with the dispatch of a First Lieutenant (Setvan Yekom) of the Gendarmerie to the Trucial Islands of Chamrush with orders engage local labour to raise a lighthouse on the southern promontory of the main island within two years. The garrison commander of the island, Bektash Khan, was instructed by a firman of the Surenshah to provide a squadron of levy-infantry to support the SHS through overseeing the labour corvée for the building of the lighthouse and to assist in the collection of financial contributions from the emirs of the islands.

Maritime Establishment

Type	In service	Class
Submarine warfare units (0)
Littoral U-boat	0	TBC
Surface warfare units (13)
Frigate	4	Shah-class frigate (De Drie Hertogdommen-class)
Corvette	7 2	Mirza-class (Elwynn-class) Khan-class (Klimatariá-class)
Patrol Craft Fast	0	TBC
Patrol Boat	12	Peri-class
Fast Attack Craft	0	TBC

Type	In service	Class
Amphibious warfare units (0)
Landing Ship Medium	0	TBC
Landing Ship Tank	0	TBC
Landing Ship Logistics	0	TBC
Landing Craft Tank	0	TBC
Landing Craft Air Cushion	0	TBC
Landing Craft Utility	0	TBC
Logistics units (0)
Ammunition carrier	0	TBC
Auxiliary floating drydock	0	TBC
Miscellaneous auxiliary ship	1	Sindbad-class
Cargo hauler	0	TBC
Fleet Replenishment Oiler	0	TBC
Water tanker	0	TBC
Training craft	0	TBC

Aerospace forces

The former emblem of the Popular Levy was retained after the accession of the Confederacy into the Raspur Pact and remained in use as a distinctive aircraft identification symbol for the Aerospace Forces of the Popular Levy.

The Aerospace Forces of the Popular Levy (Niru-ye Havâfazây-e Sāzmān-e Basij-e Sureni), established on 08.X.1688, faced the invidious task of developing a tradition of aviation, and the logistical and technological capacity to support it from scratch. The Surenid rebels, then a part of the Azad Eura coalition - which would become the basis of the present confederacy, had passed through the Second Euran War without aircraft. The odd assortment of light aircraft and cargo planes assembled by the Suren under the guise of a civil aviation company (Havâpeymâye Shahrokh) having fallen into the hands of the Raspurids at the onset of the conflict between Azad Eura and Constancia. The doubtful status of relations between the Surenid and Constancia has played its part in delaying or inhibiting the operational aircraft and machine tools into the Confederacy after its formation, although a team of specialist advisors from Brightworks Mistra did make representations to the authorities in Surenshahr during the southern hemisphere winter of 1687.

The limitations of the Surenid industrial base, built around light manufacturing and the repurposing of recovered artefacts dating back to the Babkhan era, hindered the development of an indigenous aviation industry. In spite of this the Suren Central Manufacturing Organisation was able to perfect the design of the Type 1 Aero Engine, a reciprocating internal combustion engine with pistons in a radial configuration. This engine, produced on assembly lines in Surenshahr, was installed on two light aircraft types - the F-1 Homā, a metal tube frame and canvas biplane, and the F-2 Simurgh, a high-winged stressed metal monoplane with fixed landing gear - both produced by Suren Aviation Industries that formed the mainstay of the Aerospace Forces as it developed its initial cadre of pilots.

Of an entirely different order of magnitude to the light aircraft produced indigenously, both in terms of size and technological sophistication, was the vast Veliki 1 Transporter obtained from the defecting garrison of Port Ulje in 1690 AN. Presently parked on the runway at Kara Airfield, the only one in Surenid territory of sufficient length for the Veliki to have landed upon, the transporter and its internal workings is an object of study and curiosity for the country's aspiring aviation engineers.

Of the appreciable quantity of light aircraft and unmanned aerial reconnaissance vehicles accumulated during the Third Euran War the majority have been distributed evenly amongst the seven satrapan divisions, with the residue - including airframes placed into storage or assigned to training missions - held at Kara.

In 1712 AN a military aerodrome was established at Mehrshahr, primarily with the intention of serving as an aviation hub for personnel associated with the Committee of Euran Salvation which was headquartered in the city.

Aerospace equipment

Name	Origin	Type	Quantity	Image	Notes
Light aircraft
F-1 Homā	Suren	Light attack, trainer and communications aircraft	180		Production commenced 1688 AN
F-2 Simurgh	Suren	Light attack, trainer and communications aircraft	59		Production commenced 1690 AN
T-3 Akóntio	Ergostásio Aeroskafón	Jet trainer / light attack aircraft	4		Received under Fontainebleau Accords 1692 AN
T-4/A-4 Flecha	ESB Susa	Turboprop trainer / light attack aircraft	486		16x Received under Fontainebleau Accords 1692 AN; 470x transferred by Nouvelle Alexandrie, 1694 AN; 150x assigned to operational squadrons, 75x assigned to training formations, 261x placed into storage for replacements and spares.
Transport aircraft
C-11 Mula	ESB Susa	Transport airplane	24		Received under Fontainebleau Accords 1692 AN
Veliki 1 Transporter	Krasnocoria	Transport airplane	1		Recovered from Port Ulje 1690 AN
Unmanned Aerial Vehicle
VT-UAV 1 Tadpole	Ergostásio Aeroskafón	Reconnaissance UAV	200		Received under Fontainebleau Accords 1692 AN