Irked by their recent loss of the city of Idlib to al-Qaeda’s Nusra Front, the Syrian military is accusing neighboring Turkey of orchestrating the defeat, both planning the attack and giving al-Qaeda advanced communication gear to use in the attack.
Syrian military sources claimed the Nusra fighters were using advanced communications equipment they were never known to possess, and said they believe Turkey provided them.
The comments were an elaboration on allegations by President Assad, who over the weekend accused Turkey’s president of being a “Muslim Brotherhood fanatic” determined to prop up Islamist factions in Syria.
Turkey’s Foreign Ministry has not responded to the allegations. They have been providing aid to Islamist factions for years, of course, but directly aiding the al-Qaeda takeover of a semi-major city would be a hugely controversial move, and one sure to provoke a backlash.