Rebel Bombing Kills 30 Syrian Troops at Checkpoint

Rebels Dug Tunnel Underneath Idlib Checkpoint

A massive bomb was detonated beneath a military checkpoint in the northwestern Idlib Province of Syria today, killing 30 soldiers outside of the strategically important town of Maarat al-Numaan.

While bomb attacks against checkpoints are nothing new, in this case the rebels apparently dug a tunnel underneath the area where the checkpoint was located, packing it full of explosives and remotely detonating it.

The rebels involved issued a video and images reportedly of the attack, showing an explosion in the distance as the rebel fighters celebrated. Syria’s government has yet to confirm the toll, though that is not unusual in such situations.

Maarat al-Numaan has been a heavily contested city because of its strategic location along a highway connecting the capital city of Damascus with the northern city of Aleppo.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.