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DOCUMENTS SHOW TURKEY SENT OVER 47 TONS OF WEAPONRY TO SYRIAN REBELS
December 16, 2013 - 13:02 AMT
PanARMENIAN.Net - Turkey has sent over 47 tons of weaponry to the
Syrian rebels since June, according to documents filed under the United
Nations trade records, despite repeated denials from government ranks,
Hurriyet Daily News reported.
The UN records show that Turkey has sent varying amounts of guns to
the Syrian rebels over the past few months, with the highest amount
reaching nearly 29 tons of weaponry in September alone. The numbers
are found in the UN Comtrade, a database of international trade
statistics detailed according to commodities and partner countries.
Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesperson Levent Gumrukcu initially denied
the numbers, but later on confirmed to daily Hurriyet that the UN
numbers were based on previous records from the Turkish Statistics
Institute (TUÄ°K), which filed the weaponry sent to Syria as "guns
without military uses."
This category, which includes shotguns and hunting rifles, but
excludes more advanced weaponry such as Kalashnikovs, allows for
states to bypass the weapons embargo currently imposed on Syria.
Turkey has repeatedly denied providing military assistance to the
Syrian rebels, despite several reports claiming otherwise.
Back in August, opposition sources claimed that 400 tons of arms
had been sent into Syria from Turkey to boost insurgent capabilities
against Syrian government forces, after a suspected chemical weapons
strike on rebellious suburbs of Damascus. The claims were strictly
denied by Turkish diplomats at the time.
In November, authorities seized nearly 1,000 rocket heads after
searching a truck in the southern province of Adana. The local governor
said 10 people had been detained in the raid, during which 935 rocket
heads and 10 launching pads were seized. At the time, Adana Governor
Huseyin Avni CoÅ~_ claimed that the operation proved Turkey was not
supporting radical groups in Syria.
http://www.panarmenian.net/eng/news/173990/
December 16, 2013 - 13:02 AMT
PanARMENIAN.Net - Turkey has sent over 47 tons of weaponry to the
Syrian rebels since June, according to documents filed under the United
Nations trade records, despite repeated denials from government ranks,
Hurriyet Daily News reported.
The UN records show that Turkey has sent varying amounts of guns to
the Syrian rebels over the past few months, with the highest amount
reaching nearly 29 tons of weaponry in September alone. The numbers
are found in the UN Comtrade, a database of international trade
statistics detailed according to commodities and partner countries.
Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesperson Levent Gumrukcu initially denied
the numbers, but later on confirmed to daily Hurriyet that the UN
numbers were based on previous records from the Turkish Statistics
Institute (TUÄ°K), which filed the weaponry sent to Syria as "guns
without military uses."
This category, which includes shotguns and hunting rifles, but
excludes more advanced weaponry such as Kalashnikovs, allows for
states to bypass the weapons embargo currently imposed on Syria.
Turkey has repeatedly denied providing military assistance to the
Syrian rebels, despite several reports claiming otherwise.
Back in August, opposition sources claimed that 400 tons of arms
had been sent into Syria from Turkey to boost insurgent capabilities
against Syrian government forces, after a suspected chemical weapons
strike on rebellious suburbs of Damascus. The claims were strictly
denied by Turkish diplomats at the time.
In November, authorities seized nearly 1,000 rocket heads after
searching a truck in the southern province of Adana. The local governor
said 10 people had been detained in the raid, during which 935 rocket
heads and 10 launching pads were seized. At the time, Adana Governor
Huseyin Avni CoÅ~_ claimed that the operation proved Turkey was not
supporting radical groups in Syria.
http://www.panarmenian.net/eng/news/173990/