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SYRIAN REBELS SEIZE COASTAL AREA
Syrian rebels have seized control of sea access for the first time
since the uprising began in March 2011
http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/world-news/syrian-rebels-seize-coastal-area-30124286.html
25 MARCH 2014
Syrian rebels have seized control of a tourist site by the Turkish
border that allowed them a small foothold by the Mediterranean for the
first time since the uprising erupted against president Bashar Assad,
activists say.
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The reported capture of the seaside strip known as Samra came after
rebels severed one of the Assad government's last links to the Turkish
border by seizing the Kassab crossing and a predominantly Armenian
Christian town of the same name on Sunday.
It provides a boost for opposition fighters who were pushed out of
key parts of the Syrian border with Lebanon over the past few weeks.
This is the first time rebels have had any sea access since the
uprising began in March 2011, said an activist who uses the name Abu
Salah al-Haffawi and Rami Abdurrahman of the British-based Syrian
Observatory for Human Rights, which has a network of activists on
the ground.
The tourist strip, Samra, straddles the Syria-Turkey border. The
Turkish government has allowed Syrian rebels to ship in aid, weapons
and men through its border crossing. Still, Samra has no port, and
Syrian military aircraft are likely to bomb rebels trying to use any
sea passage.
There was no government confirmation of Samra's capture.
A video uploaded to social networks showed a group of rebels by
the sea, some sitting on rocks and raising their guns. "This is the
village of Samra, under the rule of rebels," said the narrator of
the video. "This is the first sea access on the Mediterranean."
Activists say the rebels are from the Ansar al-Sham rebel group.
Rebels also seized a nearby mountainous point known as Observatory 45,
said the facility.
Fighting was still raging through the area today.
Syrian military aircraft flew four sorties and bombed Kassab, with
rising smoke from the bombs visible from the Turkish border crossing
of Yayladagi, according to private Turkish news agency Dogan.
Since yesterday, more than 80 wounded Syrians have been taken across
the border into Turkey for treatment and nine of them died, the news
agency said.
Meanwhile, pro-Assad forces took control over the nearby Niser hills,
the Syrian-state run news agency SANA said. Rebels had previously
occupied the area, activists say.
Rebels launched their offensive on Friday in Latakia province, the
ancestral home of the Assad family and a stronghold of his minority
Alawite sect, a Shiite offshoot that is one of the main pillars of
support for his rule.
Syrian rebels have seized control of sea access for the first time
since the uprising began in March 2011
http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/world-news/syrian-rebels-seize-coastal-area-30124286.html
25 MARCH 2014
Syrian rebels have seized control of a tourist site by the Turkish
border that allowed them a small foothold by the Mediterranean for the
first time since the uprising erupted against president Bashar Assad,
activists say.
ALSO IN THIS SECTION
[TICON-A VIDEO] Four arrested over New York World Trade Center base
jump video
RAF officers mark Great Escape
[TICON-A VIDEO] Video: Belfast singer Fiona O'Kane's sweet and
beautiful 'condom song'
Summit pledge on nuclear security
Lose 2.5 Stone
Read our Report on how To Lose 2.5 Stone
badnews.co
Got a Spare Room?
Host guests in your own home. Sign up Now to Become a Host Family
www.homestay.com/host
Ads by Google
The reported capture of the seaside strip known as Samra came after
rebels severed one of the Assad government's last links to the Turkish
border by seizing the Kassab crossing and a predominantly Armenian
Christian town of the same name on Sunday.
It provides a boost for opposition fighters who were pushed out of
key parts of the Syrian border with Lebanon over the past few weeks.
This is the first time rebels have had any sea access since the
uprising began in March 2011, said an activist who uses the name Abu
Salah al-Haffawi and Rami Abdurrahman of the British-based Syrian
Observatory for Human Rights, which has a network of activists on
the ground.
The tourist strip, Samra, straddles the Syria-Turkey border. The
Turkish government has allowed Syrian rebels to ship in aid, weapons
and men through its border crossing. Still, Samra has no port, and
Syrian military aircraft are likely to bomb rebels trying to use any
sea passage.
There was no government confirmation of Samra's capture.
A video uploaded to social networks showed a group of rebels by
the sea, some sitting on rocks and raising their guns. "This is the
village of Samra, under the rule of rebels," said the narrator of
the video. "This is the first sea access on the Mediterranean."
Activists say the rebels are from the Ansar al-Sham rebel group.
Rebels also seized a nearby mountainous point known as Observatory 45,
said the facility.
Fighting was still raging through the area today.
Syrian military aircraft flew four sorties and bombed Kassab, with
rising smoke from the bombs visible from the Turkish border crossing
of Yayladagi, according to private Turkish news agency Dogan.
Since yesterday, more than 80 wounded Syrians have been taken across
the border into Turkey for treatment and nine of them died, the news
agency said.
Meanwhile, pro-Assad forces took control over the nearby Niser hills,
the Syrian-state run news agency SANA said. Rebels had previously
occupied the area, activists say.
Rebels launched their offensive on Friday in Latakia province, the
ancestral home of the Assad family and a stronghold of his minority
Alawite sect, a Shiite offshoot that is one of the main pillars of
support for his rule.