Syrian jet bombs near Turkish border
A Syrian fighter jet bombed an area near the Turkish border today, causing several casualties, officials and witnesses said.
An Associated Press video journalist saw the plane bomb an area around the Syrian town of Ras al-Ayn, some 10 yards from the Turkish border.
Last week the rebels overran three security compounds in the town, located in the predominantly Kurdish oil-producing north-eastern province of al-Hasaka, wresting control from the regime forces.
An official at the local mayor’s office said Turkish ambulances were taking several injured Syrians to a hospital, across the border in the Turkish town of Ceylanpinar.
The force of the blast shattered shop windows in Ceylanpinar, in south-eastern Turkey, the official said. It was not clear if anyone in Ceylanpinar was injured in the bombing.
The fighting in Ras al-Ayn touched off a massive flow of refugees two days ago, and more refugees were seen coming after the blast.
Earlier, a Syrian helicopter bombed rebel positions in an area further south of Ras al-Ayn and the rebels could be heard responding with machine guns, the official said.
He said the rebels had besieged a Syrian military unit in the region of Esfar Najar and the helicopter was trying to open up an escape route for the regime forces. It was also seen dropping ammunition and food for the soldiers, the official said.
The violence in Syria has killed more than 36,000 people since an uprising against President Bashar Assad’s regime began in March 2011.
Hundreds of thousands have fled the fighting into neighbouring Turkey, Jordan, Lebanon and Iraq. Another 11,000 escaped into Turkey on Friday following the surge of fighting at Ras al-Ayn.
