KSA to Pay FSA Salaries, Command Centre in Turkey to Organize Arms Supply to Rebels
After the successive revealed information on the Gulf support to Syrian rebels, this sponsorship reached its peak.
The British "Guardian" paper reported Saturday that "Saudi officials are preparing to pay the salaries of the "Free Syria Army" (FSA) as a means of encouraging mass defections from the military and increasing pressure on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad regime."
According to the daily, "the move, which has been discussed between Riyadh and senior officials in the US and Arab world, is believed to be gaining momentum as a recent flush of weapons sent to rebel forces by Saudi Arabia and Qatar starts to make an impact on battlefields in Syria."
"Turkey has also allowed the establishment of a command center in Istanbul which is coordinating supply lines in consultation with the so-called FSA leaders inside Syria," the paper added.
It further learned that "the center is believed to be staffed by up to 22 people, most of them Syrian nationals."
The Guardian witnessed the transfer of weapons in early June near the Turkish frontier. Five men dressed in the style of Gulf Arabs arrived in a police station in the border village of Altima in Syria and finalized a transfer from the Turkish town of Reyhanli of around 50 boxes of rifles and ammunition, as well as a large shipment of medicines.
The men were treated with deference by local FSA leaders and were carrying large bundles of cash. They also received two prisoners held by rebels.
"The move to pay the guerrilla forces' salaries is seen as a chance to capitalize on the sense of renewed confidence, as well as provide a strong incentive for soldiers and officers to defect," the paper mentioned.
It further highlighted to some aspects of encouraging rebels. "The plan centers on paying the FSA in either US dollars or euros, meaning their salaries would be restored to their pre-crisis levels, or possibly increased."
The "Guardian" further unveiled some of the US support to Syrian rebels."The US senator Joe Lieberman, who is actively supporting the Syrian opposition, discussed the issue of FSA salaries during a recent trip to Lebanon and Saudi Arabia."
His spokesman, Whitney Phillips, said: "Senator Lieberman has called for the US to provide robust and comprehensive support to the armed Syrian opposition, in co-ordination with our partners in the Middle East and Europe."
He has specifically called for the US to work with our partners to provide the armed Syrian opposition with weapons, training, tactical intelligence, secure communications and other forms of support to change the military balance of power inside Syria.
"Senator Lieberman also supports the idea of ensuring that the armed opposition fighters receive regular and sufficient pay, although he does not believe it is necessary for the United States to provide this funding itself directly," Phillips said.
Earlier this week the New York Times reported the CIA was operating in southern Turkey, helping allies decide which opposition fighters would get weapons.
Diplomatic sources have told "the Guardian" two US intelligence officers were in Syria's third city of Homs between December and early February, trying to establish command and control within rebel ranks.
Interviews with officials in three states reveal the influx of weapons - which includes Kalashnikovs, rocket propelled grenades and anti-tank missiles - started in mid-May.
The officials, who insisted on anonymity, said the final agreement to move weapons from storage points inside Turkey into rebel hands was hard won, with Ankara first insisting on diplomatic cover from the Arab states and the US.
The "Guardian" highlights that "the FSA admits that some foreign Arab fighters have travelled to Syria to join its ranks, particularly in Homs and in Douma near Damascus."
However, they claim they do not play a decisive role.
Source: Guardian, Edited by moqawama.org
