Syria Rebels Take Army Base after Deadly Air Raids

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Al-Qaida's Syria affiliate and rebel allies overran a regime military base in Idlib on Monday, a day after government raids killed 73 civilians in the northwestern province, a monitoring group said.

The capture of Al-Qarmid, southeast of the provincial capital, consolidated a series of victories for the rebel alliance of al-Qaida affiliate Al-Nusra Front and other Islamist factions.

"The Al-Qarmid base fell to rebel fighters, and the regime has withdrawn from it," Syrian Observatory for Human Rights director Rami Abdel Rahman said.

He said the regime stored several tanks and heavy artillery pieces at Al-Qarmid.

Many of those weapons were seized on Monday by the same Islamist coalition that captured the last major government-held city in Idlib province on Saturday.

The fall of Jisr al-Shughur followed the loss of Idlib city last month.

Syrian state television reported that the army had killed "a number of terrorists" in fierce clashes around Al-Qarmid.  

But Abdel Rahman said government forces had failed to hold the base despite heavy shelling of rebel positions, and had lost 15 soldiers. 

He had no immediate information on rebel casualties. 

Early on Monday, Al-Nusra's official Twitter and Facebook accounts published photos of tanks and artillery with the caption: "Inside Al-Qarmid military base: the jihadists' spoils." 

The accounts also carried pictures of fiery explosions, that they said were caused by suicide bombers blowing themselves up at checkpoints before the base was stormed. 

Abdel Rahman told AFP at least two suicide bombers in cars laden with explosives targeted entrances to the base. 

He said forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad still held three other bases in Idlib province and a military airport further east, as well as smaller towns. 

But the rebels' recent gains have opened up a strategic assault route to neighbouring Latakia province on the Mediterranean coast, a bastion of the Assad regime. 

Since the Saturday capture of Jisr al-Shughur, the regime has launched a spate of air strikes on rebel-held towns in Idlib province that killed at least 73 civilians on Sunday alone.

Abdel Rahman said 19 children and 11 women were among the dead, with the deadliest strike coming in the town of Darkush, near the Turkish border.

Raids there on Sunday hit a marketplace, killing 53 people, including eight children and nine women. 

More than 220,000 people have been killed in the conflict in Syria since it began with peaceful protests in March 2011. 

Comments 16
Missing humble almost 9 years

Soon the Butcher will announce the creation of his Alawistan.

Missing ArabDemocrat.com almost 9 years

He can announce it. It will not last.

Thumb lebanon_first almost 9 years

where is Hezbollah? Why isnt he protecting idlib?

Default-user-icon Righthandmen (Guest) almost 9 years

God bless the King Saud for uniting the Sunnah.

Missing ArabDemocrat.com almost 9 years

I will bless his soul if he unites the Syrian people and if the outcome is a democratic state.

Thumb Mystic almost 9 years

The King of Sunnah, what a joke. Takfiris gets so happy when they take a border town close to Turkey, we will see how long their offensive can last.

Missing ArabDemocrat.com almost 9 years

Not a single positive contribution these days FT!!! Just knee jerk reactions!!! And Mystic, It will last as long as KSA and Turkey supply them with weapons. This is a battle of Tahreek - to make it clear to the Syrian regime and more importantly Iran to deal.

Thumb Mystic almost 9 years

We will see how happy you are when the next offensives starts against your wahabis.

We know fully well your plans in Syria, not just to get rid of Assad but destroy all sects in Syria. Do you think all these groups fights for one man? They fight for their families survival.

Thumb Mystic almost 9 years

Yeah right texas, just like it was the end in the last two Latakia offenses or when that bomb exploded in 2012 the government room with Assef Shawkat inside, that was the last days of the government right.

Any realist will know, that this is a war that will continue for a very long time.

Missing helicopter almost 9 years

Righthandmen, I hope you are kidding and if NOT I hope you are not Lebanese.

Missing ya_kord almost 9 years

you can't lead a country without taking responsibility for what happens to it. Assad policies push Syria into what it is now with most Syrians supporting anyone but him. The terrorists cannot be cleaned up in Syria if you don't remove what is causing them. Second defending Lebanon's small borders should happen in Lebanon and not in a country ten times bigger so hezbollah is not in Syria to defend Lebanon that you can be sure of.

Missing ArabDemocrat.com almost 9 years

Tric - get a brain. Was it not for some Lebanese factions, your beloved regime was ready to make a deal.

Default-user-icon achrafieh (Guest) almost 9 years

hope tomorrow bachar falls and Syria becomes an arab democratic country
and the rest of the arab countries follow

Thumb chrisrushlau almost 9 years

Slavery is obsolete. The US south was defeated by its own obsolescence long before Lincoln did it on the field of battle. The US south collapsed under the weight of its own contradictions. Lebanon is in slow-motion collapse, from the moment of its founding by France. Abolish Article 24.

Missing helicopter almost 9 years

Tell that to HA, you want to enslave all of Lebanon to promote their ideology. THey are the Shiite version of Nusra/ISIS

Thumb ex-fpm almost 9 years

busy now in yemen