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As Conflict Continues, Assad's Arms Under Strain
(New York Times) C.J. Chivers - Rebels have turned part of Assad's formidable arsenal on his own troops. Anti-Assad fighters on Wednesday shelled a military airport in Aleppo with captured weapons. On Tuesday, rebels used commandeered Syrian Army tanks in a skirmish with Assad's troops. Close observers of the military say Syria is having trouble keeping its sophisticated and maintenance-intensive weapons functioning. The government depends on helicopter gunships to extend its reach to parts of the country rendered impassable to even armored vehicles by the rebels. Analysts said Syria's fleet of Mi-25 Hind-D attack helicopters, which numbered 36 at the start of the conflict, is insufficient as the number of fronts continues to proliferate. Estimates are that only half the fleet can be used at a given time. Jeffrey White, a former U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency analyst now studying Syria for the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, said that by his estimates the Syrian military suffered nearly 1,100 soldiers killed in July, and is losing more to defections. The loyalties of many commanders and units are suspect, he added, and months of sustained combat are taking a heavy toll on tanks and aircraft in a military that "was never known for maintenance." In recent weeks there have been indications that anti-Assad fighters are posing greater risks to government helicopters. Videos have shown fighting groups with a growing number of captured 12.7-mm., 14.5-mm. and 23-mm. machine guns - all of which can be lethal to helicopters.