• Military

• WMD Menu                           

• Introduction
• Systems
• Facilities
• Agencies
• Operations
• Countries
• Hot Documents
• News
• Reports
• Policy
• Budget
• Congress
• Links

• Intelligence
• Homeland Security
• Space

Syrian Rebels Claim Army Base Near Damascus

November 20, 2012

Rebels in Syria are claiming to have taken control of an army base on the outskirts of Damascus.

Two units of the Islamist rebel groups Ansar Al-Islam and Jund Allah Brigades said they had taken the base of the Air Defense Battalion near Hajar al-Aswad after four days of fighting.

Video footage showed rebels walking through the site, past destroyed antiaircraft guns.

Meanwhile, European Union foreign ministers on November 19 called the new Syrian opposition "legitimate representatives" of the Syrian people, but stopped short of granting it full recognition.

The new coalition, however, was denounced as a foreign creation by 13 Islamic radical factions inside Syria, including the Al-Tawheed Brigade, which is one of the largest rebel groups operating in the northern city of Aleppo.

Based on AP and Reuters reporting

Source: http://www.rferl.org/content/syria-/24775678.html

Copyright (c) 2012. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.