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| Photo by: BBC |
Rebels are reported to have taken control of a strategic military airbase in north-western Syria after days of fierce fighting with government forces. Opposition activists said the Free Syrian Army (FSA) was in full control of Taftanaz airport. Videos purportedly showed fighters inside the facility. Helicopters based there have been used to bombed rebel-held areas.
Meanwhile, top US and Russian officials are attending talks in Geneva with the UN envoy to Syria, Lakhdar Brahimi. They were expected to discuss how to advance a peace plan proposed by world powers in June, but the BBC's Imogen Foulkes say a diplomatic breakthrough is unlikely.
Russia and the US disagree over the opposition demand that President Bashar al-Assad should step down.
Ammunition store Hundreds of FSA fighters - led by the jihadist groups al-Nusra Front, Ahrar al-Sham and the Islamic Vanguard - have besieged Taftanaz Military Airport in Idlib province for weeks.
Helicopters based at the sprawling facility have been used to bomb rebel-held areas in the north and deliver vital supplies to government forces. Rebel fighters broke into the airbase on Wednesday night after days of fighting, and by Thursday had seized control of more than half of it.
On Friday morning, the Local Co-ordination Committees (LCC), an opposition activist network, reported that the FSA was now in full control. The LCC also said a government warplane had later bombed the nearby town of Taftanaz. Videos posted online purportedly showed Islamist fighters inspecting armoured vehicles outside the airbase's main gate, and at an ammunition store inside the facility.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), a UK-based activist group, said the fighting ended at about 11:00 (09:00 GMT).
"Many regime forces have been killed and most of the soldiers and officers fled at dawn," Rami Abdul Rahman told the AFP news agency. "This is the largest airbase to be seized since the revolt began."
The military had removed all its helicopters, except for 20 which were no longer in working condition, he added.
On Wednesday, one opposition activist said the military had blown up aircraft at the base pre-emptively to prevent the rebels gaining access to them. The SOHR said 15 helicopters appeared to have been damaged.
'Flagrant bias'
The violence came as the UN and Arab League envoy to Syria began further talks about a political solution in Geneva with the US Assistant Secretary of State, William Burns, and Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister, Mikhail Bogdanov.
Officials said they would discuss how to implement the plan proposed by the Action Group for Syria in June, which called for an immediate ceasefire and the establishment of a transitional government that could include officials serving under Mr Assad and members of the opposition.
However, our correspondent says the mood ahead of the talks is not optimistic.
On Sunday, President Assad made a defiant speech with no sign he would step down, something Washington has been demanding for some time. Moscow however disagrees with such calls, saying Syrians alone should decide their future.
On Thursday, the Syrian government accused Mr Brahimi of "flagrant bias" over comments he made criticising Mr Assad. Mr Brahimi told the BBC on Wednesday that people in Syria believed that one family ruling a country for 40 years was "a little bit too long".
"President Assad could take the lead in responding to the aspiration of his people rather than resisting it," the Algerian diplomat added, implying that he thought the Syrian leader should go.
Mr Brahimi later told the Reuters news agency that he saw no place for Mr Assad in any political transition.
The UN recently said more than 60,000 people had been killed since the uprising against the president began in March 2011.
Meanwhile, top US and Russian officials are attending talks in Geneva with the UN envoy to Syria, Lakhdar Brahimi. They were expected to discuss how to advance a peace plan proposed by world powers in June, but the BBC's Imogen Foulkes say a diplomatic breakthrough is unlikely.
Russia and the US disagree over the opposition demand that President Bashar al-Assad should step down.
Ammunition store Hundreds of FSA fighters - led by the jihadist groups al-Nusra Front, Ahrar al-Sham and the Islamic Vanguard - have besieged Taftanaz Military Airport in Idlib province for weeks.
Helicopters based at the sprawling facility have been used to bomb rebel-held areas in the north and deliver vital supplies to government forces. Rebel fighters broke into the airbase on Wednesday night after days of fighting, and by Thursday had seized control of more than half of it.
On Friday morning, the Local Co-ordination Committees (LCC), an opposition activist network, reported that the FSA was now in full control. The LCC also said a government warplane had later bombed the nearby town of Taftanaz. Videos posted online purportedly showed Islamist fighters inspecting armoured vehicles outside the airbase's main gate, and at an ammunition store inside the facility.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), a UK-based activist group, said the fighting ended at about 11:00 (09:00 GMT).
"Many regime forces have been killed and most of the soldiers and officers fled at dawn," Rami Abdul Rahman told the AFP news agency. "This is the largest airbase to be seized since the revolt began."
The military had removed all its helicopters, except for 20 which were no longer in working condition, he added.
On Wednesday, one opposition activist said the military had blown up aircraft at the base pre-emptively to prevent the rebels gaining access to them. The SOHR said 15 helicopters appeared to have been damaged.
'Flagrant bias'
The violence came as the UN and Arab League envoy to Syria began further talks about a political solution in Geneva with the US Assistant Secretary of State, William Burns, and Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister, Mikhail Bogdanov.
Officials said they would discuss how to implement the plan proposed by the Action Group for Syria in June, which called for an immediate ceasefire and the establishment of a transitional government that could include officials serving under Mr Assad and members of the opposition.
However, our correspondent says the mood ahead of the talks is not optimistic.
On Sunday, President Assad made a defiant speech with no sign he would step down, something Washington has been demanding for some time. Moscow however disagrees with such calls, saying Syrians alone should decide their future.
On Thursday, the Syrian government accused Mr Brahimi of "flagrant bias" over comments he made criticising Mr Assad. Mr Brahimi told the BBC on Wednesday that people in Syria believed that one family ruling a country for 40 years was "a little bit too long".
"President Assad could take the lead in responding to the aspiration of his people rather than resisting it," the Algerian diplomat added, implying that he thought the Syrian leader should go.
Mr Brahimi later told the Reuters news agency that he saw no place for Mr Assad in any political transition.
The UN recently said more than 60,000 people had been killed since the uprising against the president began in March 2011.
article source: BBC
