16 Turkey-backed rebels killed in Syria blast

At least 16 Ankara-backed rebels were killed in a blast, de-stabilsing their position across the Syrian-Turkish border, authorities said on Ocotber 6.

According to Xinua news agency report, a London-based Syrian observatory for Human Rights said the explosion targeted a group of fighters at the Atama crossing between Syria and Turkey, a region said to be under the control of the Free Syrian Army.

The Free Syrian Army was formed in August 2011 by a group of army deserters led by Col Riad-al Assad, who defected from the Syrian Air Force earlier in July. Initially a defensive force, the FSA gradually increased its offensive operations in Syria with ground estimates putting the total number of soldiers to 20,000 it its base prvince of Homs.

On August 14, a blast hit the same crossing at Atama, killing 35 rebels and civilians, and injuring 40 others.