Debka so apply your ration of salt. Russian-speaking Al Qaeda fighters from Chechnya and the Caucasian seized the key northern Syrian air base of Minakh 10 kilometers south of Aleppo, from the Syrian army Monday, Aug. 5.This was the first important gain by Al Qaeda's North Caucasian brigade, Jaish al-Muhajireen wal Ansar, and its Chechen commander Abu Omar. They did not give the Syrian troops at the base a chance to flee. They caught and executed them by slashing their throats or beheading -- in accordance with al Qaeda custom. This fate was also suffered by the Syrian air force's chief operations officer in the north.
The assault was enabled by suicide bombings at the gate of the air base which enabled the foreign assailants to surge into the compound.
The fall of Minakh abruptly halted Syrian government air strikes against opposition-held regions in Aleppo province. Based there was a fleet of Syrian Air Force German-made MBB 223 Flamingo training craft and Russian-made Mi-8 assault helicopters. It also opened the way for Syrian rebel forces to advance on government outposts in President Bashar Assad's Alawite heartland in the Jabal al-Akrad hills of Latakia province, and capture a number of villages.