Syrian troops storm rebels command center in Aleppo, kill 150

Rebels from the Syrian opposition clash with the Syrian army forces in the restive northern city of Aleppo on July 25, 2012.

Wed Aug 1, 2012 4:50PM GMT

LAST UPDATE

 

Syrian troops have stormed armed groups’ command center in the northern city of Aleppo, killing at least 150 terrorists fighting against the government.

According to reports coming from Syria, the army attacked a rebel-held school in Aleppo’s Salahuddin district, which was being used as a command center, on Wednesday and inflicted heavy losses on anti-Damascus armed groups.

Press TV's correspondent in Syria says calm has returned to Aleppo and Syrian forces have cleared most areas of the city of armed gangs although clashes are still continuing on the outskirts.

Sausan Ghosheh, the spokeswoman for the UN observer mission in Syria, has said that anti-government rebels operating in Aleppo are in possession of heavy weapons, including tanks. Some reports also suggest that the rebels have obtained nearly two dozen shoulder-launched Sam missiles.

The terrorist Free Syrian Army has vowed to step up its attack in Aleppo by targeting the city's security centers.

Meanwhile, a video has been circulated online showing the execution by rebel gunmen in Aleppo of four supporters of President Assad's government.

Armed groups fighting against the Syrian government have been operating in Aleppo since July 20 after they were defeated in the capital, Damascus, and were forced to flee.

The Syrian government says the rebels are committing “horrific crimes” against civilians in Aleppo and Damascus.

In two letters addressed to the head of the United Nations Security Council and the UN chief, Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem said on Tuesday that the rebels, who are backed and funded by Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Turkey, are using civilians in Aleppo as human shields and killing anyone who does not support their crimes.

Syria has been experiencing unrest since March 2011. Damascus says outlaws, saboteurs, and armed terrorists are the driving factor behind the unrest and deadly violence while the opposition accuses the security forces of being behind the killings.

Western states have been calling on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to step down. However, Russia and China are strongly opposed to the Western drive to oust Assad.

The Syrian government says that the chaos is being orchestrated from outside the country, and there are reports that a very large number of the armed militants are foreign nationals, mostly from Egypt, Algeria, Saudi Arabia, and Afghanistan.

HM/AZ

River to Sea Uprooted Palestinian  
The views expressed in this article are the sole responsibility of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of this Blog!