MOSCOW, February 24 (Itar-Tass) — Armed groups of Syria’s opposition from the rebel force known as the Syrian Liberation Army get more and more weapons from abroad, a source in Russia’s secret services told Itar-Tass on Friday.
“Huge batches of small arms and munitions for the Syrian Liberation Army’s troops are supplied from Lebanon, Iraq and Turkey, but unofficially, not through these countries’ governments,” the source said. “The supply list includes submachine guns, machine guns, sniper rifles and antitank grenade launchers.”
Russia’s military expert, Lieutenant General Leonid Sazhin told Itar-Tass that “the scenario that has already been developed and administered by the United States and their NATO allies, mainly by France, Britain and Turkey, as well as the monarchy regimes from the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf, in particular Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, is being implemented in Syria.”
“This scenario was developed taking into account recent events in Libya, Egypt and other countries of the region with only one reservation – the lack of the UN Security Council resolution needed for the West. In fact, we see an unannounced military interference of some NATO member-states and countries of the region into Syria’s domestic affairs, who side with one of the conflicting parties – the armed opposition,” he said.
Sazhin noted that in addition to the Syrian National Council Syria’s refugees and army deserters in Turkey create a military structure – Supreme Revolutionary Council – led by Syrian army general Mustafa Ahmed al-Sheikh, who deserted to neighbouring Turkey.
“The main task of the Supreme Revolutionary Council is to coordinate actions of the armed opposition on the Syrian territory and to engage to its ranks new members both in Syria and beyond its borders to oust Bashar al-Assad exclusively through the use of force,” he said.
“As concerns weapons supplied to the troops of the Syrian Liberation Army, most of them were in service with the armed forces of former members of the Warsaw Treaty. After the countries joined NATO and re-equipped its troops with NATO’s samples, weapons were collected and piled up at storage facilities and depots, from where they are now taken and flow to Syria,” he said.
The expert did not rule out that some weapons can be fake Soviet weapon systems.
