Foreign States Supply Terrorists with New Missiles in Response to Syrian-Russian Operation in Aleppo

The Grad rockets with a range of 22 km and 40 km have been supplied in excellent quantities and will be used on battlefronts in Aleppo, Hama and the coastal region, rebel commander Colonel Fares al-Bayoush told Reuters on Wednesday.

While Grad missiles have previously been supplied to rebels, Bayoush underlined that it was the first time this particular type had been delivered.

Each salvo contains 40 rockets, he said, without giving further details. The rebels had previous stocks of the rocket captured from army stores, he added.

The militant commander claimed that there was as yet no sign of the rebels being supplied with anti-aircraft missiles they have demanded, while other terrorist groups, including Fatah Al-Sham (Nusra) Front and ISIL have already started using such weapons systems.

A video posted on YouTube on Monday showed Free Syrian Army (FSA) militants firing Grad missiles at Syrian government positions near Aleppo. Meanwhile, Bayoush confirmed the weapons being fired in the video were newly supplied.

Militant groups fighting under the Free Syrian Army banner have received military aid from states opposed to President Bashar al-Assad via a US-backed coordination centre in Turkey.