Iraqi army helicopters strike fuel tanker convoy in Syria
Iraqi military helicopters on Sunday struck a convoy of fuel tankers in Syria, killing at least eight in what is believed to be the first Baghdad-claimed attack since the Syrian civil war began three years ago, a government spokesman said.
Interior Ministry spokesman Saad Maan Ibrahim said the operation took place near the Iraqi border, adding that intelligence reports suggested the convoy was aiming to supply an al-Qaida spin-off group with fuel.
"The army struck eight tanker trucks in Wadi Suwab inside Syrian territory as they were trying to enter Iraqi territory to provide the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) with fuel," Maan said.
ISIL has been controlling areas in Iraq’s Anbar province since December along with other Sunni insurgent groups. Since then, government forces and allied Sunni tribal militia have been trying to dislodge the militants from parts of the provincial capital, Ramadi, and the nearby town of Fallujah, but have made no significant progress.
The attack is believed to be the first strike claimed by Iraq inside Syria since the uprising against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad broke out in March 2011.
http://www.france24.com/en/20140427-iraq-army-helicopters-strike-fuel-tanker-convoy-syria/
