‘Saudis send missiles to Syria insurgents’

A report says Saudi Arabia has been purchasing missiles from suppliers in France and Belgium since two months ago and has sent them to insurgents in Syria.

Reuters reported on Monday France has paid for the transport of the shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missiles, which were intended for the leader of the so-called Free Syrian Army (FSA) Salim Idriss, Riyadh’s “point man” in anti-Syria armed groups.
A day earlier, German news weekly Der Spiegel said the German foreign intelligence service had received a report which showed Riyadh was trying to obtain European-made mistral-class man-portable air-defense systems for the insurgents in Syria.
Idriss called on the West on Friday to provide the insurgents with anti-aircraft and anti-tank missiles, saying the armed groups could defeat the Syrian army within six months if they received enough and proper weapons.
The FSA’s political coordinator Louay Meqdad has also said the group will ask for tanks, warplanes, and other heavy weapons during an upcoming meeting with US and Western officials in Turkey.
The European Union recently ended its arms embargo on Syria to pave the way for sending weapons to the militants.