Army Group Omega (ARS)
| Army Group Epsilon | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Active | 1937-1938 |
| Country | Republic of Syara |
| Branch | Army of the Syaran Republic |
| Type | Army group |
| Size | Eight Field Armies |
| Engagements | Liberation of Ruvelka |
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders | Goran Lazarov |
Army Group Omega, also known as Army Group East Ruvelka, was the last army group formed by the Army of the Syaran Republic during the Siduri War alongside Army Group Zeta. Omega was formed after the withdrawal of the Shirvani Dominion from the war and tasked with defending Syaran holdings in eastern Ruvelka, which had been gained following the Shirvani collapse in May 1937. Omega was composed primarily of units formerly committed to the Quenminese Front and placed under the command of Field Marshal Goran Lazarov. Lazarov chose the name Omega as it was the last letter of the Hellenic alphabet and seemed befitting to the situation the Republic of Syara faced in mid-1937. Syaran officials in Zovahr argued this was defeatist and insisted the Army group be referred to as East Ruvelka, but in both private and in official correspondence Syaran troops and officers referred to it as Omega.
On paper Omega was a powerful force composed of 4,000,000 troops, supported by nearly 5,000 tanks, 8,000 artillery pieces and some 6,000 aircraft in the Syaran Army Air Corps regiments assigned to support the army group. Many of the divisions assigned to Omega were veteran units from the Quenminese Front, including some of the most decorated regiments and officers. In practice however the army group was crippled by rock-bottom morale among the majority of Syaran soldiers, many of whom had little desire to fight and potentially die in Ruvelka after nearly four years of violent conflict. Further damage was done by Ruvelkan partisans, whom between June and December 1937 destroyed nearly 1/4th of the rolling stock assigned to support the logistics of the army group.
In his memoirs, Lazarov wrote that the army group lacked a clear directive from Supreme Headquarters. Lazarov theorized that the hope was that the Syarans could bleed the Common Axis forces enough as they advanced through Ruvelka that Zovahr would be able to negotiate an armistice more favorable to the Republic. To this end the Syarans constructed fortifications along the Ruvelkan-Shirvani border, building pillboxes, digging trenches and fighting positions, and laying minefields. On the eve of the Common Axis invasion, Army Group Omega consisted of 131 divisions (9 tank divisions, 10 mechanized divisions, and 112 infantry divisions) organized into eight field armies (2nd, 3rd, 5th, 7th, 8th, 8th, 12th, 14th).
The Common Axis began its liberation of Ruvelka on 22 September with a massive air and artillery barrage against Syaran lines along the border. By October the Common Axis armies of Quenmin, the Cacertian Empire, and Ruvelkan forces in exile had ruptured Syaran defenses across the front. Syaran defensive efforts were compromised by the nature of the Ruvelkan-Shirvani border, which bulged eastward in the south, creating a salient in the Zalaegerszeg and Derecske Districts that the Common Axis exploited with a major flanking action designed to cut off Syaran forces. Common Axis troops captured the city of Zalaegerszeg by October 12th, and Nagykanisza fell the next day. The impending disaster in south-east Ruvelka compelled Lazarov to order a complete withdrawal from region, but on 2 November Cacertian troops entered the Székesfehérvár District, pushing Syaran forces into a pocket between Letavertes and Derecske. Syaran forces began withdrawing by the railroads that ran through Berhida, but sabotage from Ruvelkan resistance and Common Axis air strikes destroyed the lines and railyards, crippling the Syaran effort. On 15 November Mansuri forces entered Berhida, effectively cutting off the remaining Syaran troops in the south east. Just four days later the Syaran 12th and 14th Armies surrendered, resulting in the capture of 650,000 Syaran troops in what was the largest surrender in the history of Tyran.
With their southern flank collapsing, the army group withdrew to the Kurilla Mountains, abandoning large quantities of equipment and weaponry in the process. Debrecen was abandoned on 26 November, and liberated by the Ruvelkans on the 30th. Lararov established a new defensive line running from Mátészalka through Polgardi and Hajdúböszörmény to Székesfehérvár. The last major tank battle of the war, and the last Syaran success of any kind, occurred north-west of Marcali between 29 November and 2 December when Syaran forces managed to repel a Cacertian-Quenminese armored thrust towards Mátészalka with employment of Syara's remaining Cyllarus and Bienor heavy tanks. The onset of heavy snowfall and plummeting temperatures brought a cessation to major action by both sides in December, which provided the Syarans with a desperately needed reprieve; after just over two months of fighting Army Group Omega had suffered over one million casualties including killed, wounded, and captured. The harsh winter, however, only furthered dampened Syaran spirits.
On 5 January the Common Axis resumed its offensive, and Syaran lines began to buckle and crumble across the front line. On 14 January Lazarov reported to Zovahr that he expected his units to cease to exist as a cohesive fighting force by the end of January if he were to not withdraw back to Syara itself. His report, along with similar from Army Group Zeta, contributed to the suicide of President Sasko Anastasov on 16 January, which was followed by a ceasefire on the 17th. Less than a month later the Treaty of Debrecen was signed, ending the war. Army Group Omega was dissolved shortly thereafter.