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In less than 24 hours, rebels used surface-to-air missiles to strike down two aircraft in northern Syria, marking a turning point in their war with forces of President Bashar al-Assad. <\/p>\nIn less than 24 hours, rebels used surface-to-air missiles to strike down two aircraft in northern Syria, marking a turning point in their war with forces of President Bashar al-Assad. <\/p>\n
Since the end of July, the Syrian regime has used fighter jets to try to suppress a growing insurgency. The air force has frequently bombarded rebel-held areas across the country, causing high casualties.<\/p>\n
But on Wednesday morning, rebels shot down a warplane in the northern province of Aleppo, an AFP reporter said.<\/p>\n
The warplane crashed after it was hit by a massive explosion, a tower of thick black smoke rising into the sky, said the reporter, who was just a few kilometres (miles) away.<\/p>\n
The previous day insurgents had downed an army helicopter for the first time.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a turning point,\u201d said Riad Kahwaji, expert at the Institute for Near East and Gulf Military Analysis (INEGMA).<\/p>\n
\u201cIf the Syrian air force starts losing several aircraft every day, that will be a significant turning point because the regime will lose its superiority and will no longer be able to use its main means of delivering strong fire power effectively,\u201d Kahwaji told AFP.<\/p>\n
The jet fell on an olive grove a kilometer (less than a mile) away from the village of Tourmanin, north of the embattled city of Aleppo.<\/p>\n
Wednesday\u2019s attack, claimed by a rebel Free Syrian Army group, occurred near the Sheikh Suleiman base, the last garrison in government hands between Syria\u2019s second city and the Turkish border.<\/p>\n
Dozens of rebels rushed to the scene minutes after the plane was shot down, crying out \u201cAllahu Akbar!\u201d (God is Greatest).<\/p>\n
Children rummaged among the shouldering debris, as the stench of kerosene and burning plastic rose. Some teenagers picked up pieces of the plane’s broken wings, others played with ammunition.<\/p>\n
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a watchdog that relies on a network of activists and medics on the ground, confirmed that the jet had been brought down with a missile.<\/p>\n
While some witnesses gave a similar version, others said rebels used an anti-aircraft gun to strike the jet.<\/p>\n
It appeared more likely that the rebels used a missile as the plane had been flying at a high altitude.<\/p>\n
Rebels in Tourmanin said insurgent members of the Ahrar Daret Ezza group, whose name means the Free People of Daret Ezza, a nearby village, were responsible for the strike.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe plane had the time to drop its bombs, just before it crashed,\u201d one witness told AFP.<\/p>\n
The crash caused an explosion that was easily heard several kilometers away.<\/p>\n
The two pilots in the plane ejected before the crash, with one of them captured immediately after making a parachute landing, witnesses said. The fate of the second pilot is unknown.<\/p>\n
The jet was the second government aircraft to have been shot down by rebels using missiles in less than 24 hours.<\/p>\n
In the same area on Tuesday, insurgents downed the army helicopter with a ground-to-air missile, in what the Observatory said had the potential to change the balance of military power in the 20-month old conflict.<\/p>\n
The gunship had been on a strafing run near Sheikh Suleiman.<\/p>\n
Little more than a week ago, the rebels seized tanks, armored vehicles, artillery, 120-mm mortars and rocket launchers when they took the regime forces\u2019 sprawling Base 46, about 12 kilometers (eight miles) west of Aleppo.<\/p>\n
Rebel commander General Ahmed Faj told AFP on Friday that the rebels also seized surface-to-air missiles from the base.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf the rebels have a significant arsenal of surface-to-air missiles, like the well-known Stingers that decimated Russian helicopters and jets in Afghanistan, Assad\u2019s army will lose part of its control of the sky,\u201d Syria expert Fabrice Balanche told AFP.<\/p>\n
\u201cRebel-held areas will become safe, and insurgents will be able to go on the offensive without fearing the aerial threat.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a red line the rebels and their supporters have crossed,\u201d Balanche added.<\/p>\n
Syria\u2019s revolt is supported by Turkey, several Gulf states and the West, while Russia, China and Iran offer assistance to Assad\u2019s regime.<\/p>\n
\u201cNow the Russians will certainly give the Syrians more sophisticated equipment,\u201d said Balanche.<\/p>\n
Syria new opposition 1st meeting<\/strong> The 60 or so delegates, chosen after talks in Qatar this month, are meeting in Cairo ahead of a gathering of the Friends of Syria, a grouping of dozens of nations that had pledged mostly non-military backing for the revolt but who are worried by the influence of Islamists in the opposition.<\/p>\n A transitional government is crucial to win effective Arab and Western support for the 20-month revolt against Assad, and would bolster the opposition as a democratic alternative to decades of autocratic rule in Syria.<\/p>\n Source: Alarabiya.net<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In less than 24 hours, rebels used surface-to-air missiles to strike down two aircraft in northern Syria, marking a turning point in their war with forces of President Bashar al-Assad.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2489","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n
Politically, Syria\u2019s new opposition coalition held its first full meeting on Wednesday to discuss forming a transitional government but disagreements broke out at the outset, showing that President Bashar al-Assad’s foes remain deeply divided.<\/p>\n