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Free Syrian army tries to take control of military airport of Menagh with tanks 0308123

Conflict in the World - Syria War

Friday, August 3, 2012, 10:07 AM

Free Syrian army tries to take control of military airport of Menagh with tanks.

Free Syrian Army soldiers used tanks seized in previous clashes with government troops to pound the Menagh military airport, the opposition Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. The base is north of Aleppo, Syria's commercial capital. The main military airfield in the region is southeast of the city.

Free Syrian Army fighters take a break from fighting with forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad in downtown Aleppo August 1, 2012.

Syrian government forces warplanes shelled the western and northern parts of the city of Aleppo , the opposition Local Coordination Committees of Syria said.

Communication was spotty inside the besieged city. Cellular phone service was cut off, and power outages were reported in neighborhoods where there was heavy shelling, according to Deama, an activist there who asked that her full name not be used for her protection.

Rebels are now equipped with heavy weaponry, including tanks, the United Nations said, a sign that the armed resistance to President Bashar al-Assad's regime is gaining military potency.

MiG-23 fighter jets struck rebels in an Aleppo village, said Capt. Ammar Al-Wawi of the Free Syrian Army.

Syrian state TV said soldiers "have been able to eliminate scores of terrorists and mercenaries" in Aleppo and claim to be sweeping through the city's Salaheddine neighborhood and towns west of Aleppo.