Rebels
seize Syrian army outpost at Turkey border: witnesses
GUVECCI, Turkey (Reuters) - Syrian rebels have seized
a government army outpost near the Turkish border province of Hatay and a rebel
flag flew over the building on Sunday, while clashes could be heard in the area
of a nearby Syrian
village, a Reuters witness and villagers said.
The rebels took control of the three-storey
white building, around 1 km (mile) from the border on a hill overlooking the
Turkish village of Guvecci on Saturday, and raised the flag of the Free Syrian Army, villagers said.
"In the last four days there were heavy
clashes going on here. We couldn't sleep. Yesterday morning, the Syrian army controlled this area. Now it is
calmer," said villager Musa Sasak, 27.
Three mortar bombs fired from Syria landed near Guvecci village on Saturday,
prompting a fourth day of retaliatory fire from Turkish forces. The Syrian
mortar rounds hit empty land and there were no casualties.
The exchanges are the most serious cross-border
violence in the Syrian conflict, which began as pro-democracy protests but has
evolved into a civil war with sectarian overtones. They highlight how the
crisis could destabilize the region.
Clashes could be heard on Sunday in the area of
the Syrian village of Khirbet al-Joz, behind the hill where the military
outpost was located. Smoke could be seen rising from the area.
The Syrian Observatory for Human
Rights said rebels seized control of Khirbet al-Joz and the land around it late
on Saturday after a 12-hour battle.
The British-based group, which monitors the
violence in Syria through a network of activists across the country, said at
least 40 Syrian soldiers, including five officers, were killed. Nine rebels
fighters also died, it said. That death toll could not be independently verified.
Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan warned Syria on
Friday that Turkey would not shy away from war if provoked in the wake of
artillery fire from Syrian forces which killed five Turkish civilians
further east at Akcakale on Wednesday.
NATO member Turkey was once an ally of Syrian
President Bashar al-Assad but turned against him after his violent response to
an uprising in which, according to the United Nations, more than 30,000 people
have died.
Turkey has nearly 100,000 Syrian refugees in camps on its territory, has allowed
rebel leaders sanctuary and has led calls for Assad to quit. Its armed forces
are far larger than Syria's.
By Hamdi Istanbullu | Reuters – 1
hr 18 mins ago
WHO : Syrian rebels
WHAT : have seized a government army outpost near the Turkish
border province of Hatay and a rebel flag flew over the building on Sunday
WHY : clashes
could be heard in the area of a nearby Syrian village
WHERE: Guvecci, Turkey
Element of Newsworthy : Conflict
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