RAF Tornados in Norfolk prepare for action...
... as Russian troops fly flag in chemical attack town
AS AN attack against the Syrian regime moved closer yesterday, troops on both sides of the conflict readied themselves for action in the Middle East.
RAF Tornados were spotted flying back to their base in Norfolk as they prepared to be flown out to take part in air strikes.
Meanwhile, in the Syrian town of Douma that suffered the chemical attack, flag-flying Russian vehicles turned out to oversee the surrender of rebel fighters.
At least 40 people, including women and children, died in Saturday’s attack on the outskirts of Damascus, with one rebel chief saying they had been left with no choice but to leave the area where they had held out for years against Bashar al-Assad’s Russian-backed forces.
Yesterday the Syrian flag was raised above the town’s mosque as Jaysh alIslam (Army of Islam) rebels gave up weapons and boarded buses taking them close to the Turkish border.
Experts from the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) watchdog were due to arrive in Syria last night and begin a fact-finding mission in Douma tomorrow.
Assad’s adviser Bouthaina Shaaban hailed the surrender of heavy weaponry as a ‘critical’ moment. She told a Lebanese broadcaster victory in the area had ‘sent a message to the whole world that Syria’s army and its allies can liberate every inch of Syrian territory’.
The jets at RAF Marham are on standby to fly to the British base in Cyprus, which has six Typhoon jets, eight GR4 Tornado aircraft and one air-to-air Voyager refuelling tanker, while Typhoon jets at RAF Coningsby, Lincolnshire, were put on notice to head to the region. As Syria braced for US-led strikes, Assad – who still denies his regime carried out the attack – said action would be based on ‘lies’ and further destabilise the region.
Reports suggested the Syrian government had begun moving its military aircraft to Russian bases on the Mediterranean in anticipation of a US attack. Moscow said its own ships had left the Tartus naval base in Syria for their safety, adding that this was ‘normal practice’ with the threat of an attack.
As Russia claimed there was no evidence of a chemical attack, foreign ministry spokesman Maria Zakharova said Western leaders had no authority to act as ‘investigators, prosecutors and executioners’.