Syrian
troops clashed with rebels near a military barracks and airport in
Aleppo on Friday, while shelling continued on Damascus Reef and Homs.
The
Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that clashes erupted
between pro-regime troops and opposition fighters at dawn near the
Hanano barracks in the al-Arkoub neighborhood; the use of hovercraft and
machine guns were reported in the clashes.
Clashes also rocked
the Bab el-Nasr neighborhood as heavy gunfire was heard in the New
Aleppo neighborhood, while Al Sakhour and Boustan Al Basha neighborhoods
were subject to heavy shelling.
In Aleppo Reef, the Observatory
reported that clashes erupted near the Ming Military Airport. The
General Authority of the Syrian Revolution stated that artillery
shelling coming from the airport reached the city of Aazaz in Aleppo
Reef and nearby villages.
In Damascus Reef, Douma is the scene of
continuous shelling and shooting, a day after a Syrian military
helicopter crashed in the region of Tall al-Kurdi in Damascus Reef;
conflicting reports emerged on the reason behind the crash.
On
another note, the National Coordination Body for Democratic Change
announced that it lost contact with two of its members after they left
Damascus International Airport, following their return from a visit to
China.
In a statement, the Body explained that as the delegation
was leaving the airport when it lost contact with the second
accompanying vehicle boarded by Dr. Abdul Aziz el-Kheir, the head of the
National Coordination Body’s office of international relations and
Professor Elias Ayash, member of the Body’s executive office and leader
in the Arab Socialist Movement.
The country
is embroiled in a civil war between forces fighting for President Bashar Assad
and those trying to topple him. More than 23,000 people have been killed in the
18-month conflict, according to activists.
Stances
In international positions, Syrian Information
Minister al-Zoebi confirmed on Friday that Syrian President Bashar Assad did
not give an interview to any Egyptian newspaper.
For his part, Jordan’s King
Abdullah II stressed the necessity to intensify international efforts to reach
a solution to the Syrian crisis, one that is based on “a peaceful political
transition”, according to the Jordan News Agency, Petra.
On another note, the representative
of Iraq's top Shiite Muslim cleric, Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani, called on the Iraqi government
during Friday prayers, to receive all Syrian refugees as “a humanitarian duty
and a response to their noble stances towards Iraqis.”
LBCI/AP