REBELS SAID they had captured the pilot of a Syrian government fighter jet after shooting down his aircraft yesterday.
The downing of a warplane would be a rare event for lightly armed rebels faced with the superior weaponry of President Bashar al-Assad’s forces. State television said the plane crashed due to technical difficulties.
In recent months the government has begun to use its air power to try to crush the 17-month-old uprising. The state news channel, Syria TV, said the aircraft crashed due to technical problems during a “training mission” and a search party was under way. State news agency SANA said the pilot had ejected before it crashed.
Activists released a video on YouTube which they said showed the pilot, named in the footage as Col Mufeed Mohammed Suleiman. Rebels who claim responsibility are shown questioning a greying, balding man. He is seated at a table in a black shirt next to several rebels holding rifles.
“We will treat this prisoner according to what is required of us by our religion, our morals and the protocols in the Geneva Convention related to prisoners of war,” a rebel identified as Capt Abu Laith said.
The prisoner said the bruises on his face were from the crash and not caused by the rebels, and that he had been given first aid.
An anti-Assad activist on Monday uploaded a separate video on YouTube, said to be from the town of Mohassen in Syria’s eastern province of Deir al-Zor and showing a warplane streak through the skies amid heavy gunfire. The jet suddenly erupts into flames and begins to swirl, leaving a trail of smoke.
“God is greatest! A MiG fighter jet has been hit in the town of Mohassen!” shouts the activist. There was no indication from the video as to whether the jet had been struck by rebel weapons fire.
It was also not possible to verify the location or date of the video.
Fawaz Zakri, a member of the opposition Syrian National Council visiting rebel fighters in Aleppo, urged outside powers to send arms and ammunition to help Syrians defend themselves.
“We are not asking for tanks or artillery launchers. We need anti-aircraft weapons and rockets so that we can stop this takeover by the Assad army and daily shelling,” he said.
Saudi Arabia and Qatar are believed to be paying for weapons reaching rebels via Turkey, while the US and Britain say they are stepping up non-lethal assistance. Assad’s main military suppliers are thought to be Russia and Iran.
Four civilians lay dead in a nearby street in Saif al-Dawla, Aleppo, next to the bitterly contested Salaheddine district.
All were victims of army sniper fire, said the rebel Free Syrian Army.
More than 50 Syrians, including 39 civilians, were killed across the country yesterday, according to an opposition watchdog, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
Meanwhile, Syria will be suspended from the Organisation of Islamic Co-operation tomorrow for its violent suppression of the uprising. – (Reuters)