US arming Syria militants with advanced weapons: Report

Rasa - The United States has begun supplying foreign-backed militants in Syria with advanced and high-powered weapons, according to a new report.

News ID: 753

Date: 08 April 2014 - 09:32

Rasa News Agency reports - On Monday, Israel’s Debkafile website reported that two Syrian militant groups have been supplied with advanced US weapons, including armor-piercing, optically-guided BGM-71 TOW missiles, thanks to the Pentagon.

Images of militants equipped with the advanced arms have begun to circulate online in recent days.

Syrian troops have been confiscating foreign weapons from the militants on a regular basis.

According to the Debkafile’s report, the US Joint Chiefs of Staff recently told Israeli officials that Saudi Arabia’s fighter jets would provide air cover as American forces move the weapons into southern Syria.

Last month, the US media reported that President Barack Obama and Saudi King Abdullah appeared to narrow their disagreement on assisting Syrian militants.

However, US official have acknowledged that the Obama administration policies in Syria have been a failure as the Syrian army continues its mop-up operations, tightening the noose around the militants in several areas across the country.

Foreign-sponsored Takfiri groups have been behind many of deadly bomb attacks targeting both civilians and government institutions across the Arab country over the past three years.

A British defense study published last September showed that about 100,000 militants, fragmented into 1,000 groups, were fighting in Syria against its government and people.

Syria has been gripped by deadly violence since March 2011. According to reports, the Western powers and their regional allies -- especially Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey -- are supporting the militants operating inside Syria.

PRESSTV