Iraqi Minister: Riyadh Sends Arms to al-Qaeda Terrorists in Syria through Turkey

Iraqi Minister of Transportation Hadi al-Ameri said on Tuesday that Saudi Arabia supplies weapons to al-Qaeda elements in Syria through Turkey.

“The Saudis are sending arms to al-Qaeda elements in Syria through Turkey,” al-Ameri said.

His remarks came while media reports disclosed in September that a huge arms cargo has been shipped to Turkey to be delivered to terrorists and armed groups in Syria.

“A Libyan ship carrying the largest consignment of weapons for Syria…has docked in Turkey,” said The Times in an article published mid September.

Quoting a member of the ‘Free Syrian Army’ (FSA), who called himself Abu Mohammad, the article said the over-400-ton cargo included “SAM-7 surface-to-air anti-aircraft missiles and rocket-propelled grenades.”

Abu Mohammad, who told The Times that he “helped to move the shipment from warehouses to the border”, said “this is the largest single delivery of assistance” the gunmen have so far received.

The article said the Libyan ship, which is called (victory), was berthed at the Turkish port of Iskenderun and its captain, Omar Mousaeeb had received the “papers stamped by the port authority” for the cargo.

His remarks came weeks after a Kurdish news website unveiled a secret document showing an agreement among Turkey, US, and some minority Kurdish groups to set up a federal state in Syria after helping terrorists overcome Bashar al-Assad’s government, and provide military backup for that state.

Voice of Kurdistan said that Turkey, US and some Kurdish groups in a secret meeting in the Iraqi Kurdish city of Erbil on September 2 agreed to provide financial and military backup for the establishment of a federal government in Syria.

They also agreed on the construction of several military airports in western Kurdistan and providing support for the Kurdish dissident groups supporting Turkey against Bashar al-Assad’s government.

Turkey in cooperation with the US, Saudi Arabia and Qatar have been supporting terrorists and rebel groups in Syria and have practically brought a UN peace initiative into failure to bring President Assad’s government into collapse.

Arab media sources revealed late last month, the Turkish government had asked Yemen to set up a military base for training Syrian terrorists and rebels.

According to a report by Barakish news website, the demand was raised by Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu during his visit to Yemen late October.

The report quoted an informed political source as saying to al-Share daily that Davutoglu has asked Yemeni officials to set up a training camp for the so-called Free Syrian Army (FSA).

The source further revealed that the Turkish foreign minister has also conferred with the Yemeni officials about the purchase of Russian arms for the FSA.

The Turkish foreign ministry later rejected the accusations, saying that Davutoglu had not discussed aids to FSA during his visit to Yemen.