"Underfunded and outgunned Free Syrian Army faces additional enemies" PBS Newshour 11/26/2013
Excerpt
JUDY WOODRUFF (Newshour): The head of the Free Syrian Army announced today that his group will not be attending the so-called Geneva II conference aimed at bring a political solution to the country's crisis.
Instead, FSA commander Salim Idris vowed to continue fighting to topple Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
But, as Margaret Warner reports, that objective has become increasingly unlikely as the underfunded and outgunned group is forced to fight additional enemies.
MARGARET WARNER (Newshour): Last November, we met Colonel Abdul-Jabbar Aikidi at his rebel command post outside Aleppo. His Free Syrian Army units were on the march, he told us, taking ground in the city and surrounding area and seizing the momentum against Bashar al-Assad's government forces.
COL. ABDUL JABBAR AL AIKIDI, Free Syrian Army (through interpreter): We have almost full control on the ground, though they are superior in the air and with rocket launchers, tanks and artillery. But we are superior on the ground and we have control.
MARGARET WARNER: But earlier this month, the well-regarded commander resigned his post. In this YouTube video, he voiced frustration with all the in-fighting among the rebellion's disparate units and leaders, including jihadist brigades.
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