LATEST: Syrian Military Claims Capture of as-Safira
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SUMMARY: An unnamed US Administration official has told CNN that Israel launched airstrikes against a Syrian airbase in Latakia Province.
The assertion was backed by former Syrian intelligence official Afaq Ahmad, a defector now in France. He said, from contacts inside Syria, told him that long-range Russian-made ballistic missiles had been kept at the site near the village of Ain Shikak.
Claims began circulating late Wednesday that the Israelis had targeted surface-to-air missiles and related equipment, believing they could be transferred to the Lebanese organization Hezbollah.
The Israelis have offered no comment on the reports.
Israel struck Syrian convoys near Damascus in January and May and destroyed a missile storage facility near Latakia in July.
Latest Updates, Most Recent First
Syrian Military Claims Capture of as-Safira
Syrian armed forces said on Friday that they have captured as-Safira, southeast of Aleppo and near a chemical weapons site.
The capture may allow the military to send in food and supplies to regime-controlled areas of Aleppo, under siege since the summer.
“Our heroic armed forces gained full control over the town of Safira after a series of strategic operations….The importance of this new success for our armed forces is due to its strategic importance at the eastern gates of Aleppo,” a spokesman for the Syrian army said in a televised statement.
Control of as-Safira has been contested for weeks.
The nearby chemical weapons site was one of two in Syria that inspectors could not reach because of fighting; however, they said that it had been emptied of equipment as they verified the destruction of chemical weapons facilities.
Regime Shelling Tel ‘Arn, Near as-Safira, Aleppo Province
Following reports — as yet unconfirmed — that regime forces have taken control of the town of as-Safira in Aleppo Province, footage from Friday shows regime shelling of Tel ‘Arn, the town immediately north of as-Safira (click for map).
Protest In al-Quriyya, Deir Ezzor, Against Oil Traders
A protest on Friday in the town of al-Quriyya near Deir Ezzor, against informal oil traders.
Heavy Shelling on Daraya As FSA Snipers Target Assad’s Forces
Footage from Friday shows heavy regime shelling on the Damascus suburb of Daraya, separated from Moadamiyyat ash-Sham by a highway.
Free Syrian Army snipers from the Liwa Shahada Islam targeting regime forces in Daraya:
Reports That Regime Has Taken as-Safira, Aleppo Province
We are hearing reports from sources that regime forces have managed to take the town of as-Safira in Aleppo Province, though heavy clashes are ongoing.
Friday Protest In Kafranbel: “Christians Are An Essential Part Of Syria” /h4>
Footage from today’s Friday protest in Kafranbel, famous for its provocative banners in English. Today’s banner reads, “CHRISTIANS ARE AN ESSENTIAL PART OF SYRIA AND THOSE WHO THINK OTHERWISE ARE NOT SYRIANS”.
Other posters focussed on the ongoing regime siege of the Damascus suburbs.
Regime Bombarding As-Safira In Aleppo Province With Barrel Bombs
Footage from Friday shows a regime barrel bomb hitting a residential area in the town of as-Safira in Aleppo Province.
The fight for as-Safira involves fighters from the Islamic State of Iraq and ash -Sham.
Regime Shelling, Attempts At Ground Invasion, Resume In Moadamiyyat Ash Sham
Immediately following the evacuation of some of the civilian population trapped in the West Ghouta town of Moadamiyyat Ash Sham on Tuesday, regime shelling recommenced, and has continued since then. On Friday, there are reports of intense ground clashes between Free Syrian Army fighters and pro-Assad forces on both the eastern and northern fronts of the town, with the regime using tanks to shell the area.
There have been no aid supplies delivered to the town, which is under a year-long regime siege.
Reports Of Up To 18 Civilians Killed In Air Strike On al-Hajar al-Aswad, Damascus
Citizen journalists have reported a high death toll — as many as 18 civilian deaths — in heavy regime shelling and air strikes on the Damascus neighborhood of al-Hajar al-Aswad on Thursday.
This footage from Thursday shows a row of bodies, wrapped in blankets, lined up on the ground after the attacks.
Al-Hajar al-Aswad is immediately south of the Yarmouk Palestinian refugee camp in south Damascus (click here for a map). Regime forces, backed by Hezbollah fighters, are making a push to reclaim opposition-controlled neighborhoods and pockets in south Damascus, with local activists warning of a growing humanitarian crisis in the area, including because of regime sieges preventing food and medical supplies reaching civilians.
Casualties
The Local Coordination Committees claim 98 people were killed on Thursday, including 52 martyrs were reported in Damascus and its suburbs, 16 in Aleppo Province, and 13 in Homs Province.
The Violations Documentation Center records that 77,301 people have been killed since the start of the conflict in March 2011, an increase of 107 since Thursday. Of the dead, 57,448 are civilians, a rise of 44 from yesterday.
