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In the Turkish city of Antakya, I meet a group of rebel fighters. They have travelled here
from Syria to smuggle me back across the border. We are about a kilometre away from the nearest
Turkish border post so we are crossing in the dead of night over farmland the avoid
detention by Turkish authorities. In just a few metres we will be in Syrian territory.
Just as we cross, a sombre reminder of the danger of making this journey.
Journalists once filmed here, then this car
was bombed and the dead were left in it.
The planes got to there, to the border?
Of course.
We travel to the nearest rebel safe house - and another reminder of the war.
This centre was initially for the regime then
it was taken over by the Free Army and now it serves the residents, the affected people.
All we want is help for the Syrian people,
Everyone is dying, not only us here. We want you to save the rest, children and youths.
By morning we are well inside Syria.
Syria wants freedom, Syria wants freedom,
We told him to leave, the lowlife didn't heed us.
I'm travelling through Idlib province with Bilal Al Khabin, the leader of the Free North Brigade.
After some fierce clashes this region is now largely control by the rebel Free Syrian
Army. Abou Qasim was a tank diver in the Government army before he defected.
On this road there was massive deployment
of Assad's forces or rather his gangs. But now, the Free Army is gradually capturing these areas.
Where are we going now?
We are heading towards one of the Free Syrian Army bases. It consists of tunnels for transport,
which we use when there are raids by the army.
I'm the first journalist allowed to film in what is a remarkable labyrinth
of tunnels, but not everybody is happy about this.
Please!
Forget about it. She is already here. Don't worry. Film later. I'm telling you she is
already here!
He knows.
I know what I am doing.
I asked twice, he said it's fine.
Don't film, he's not ready.
This vast network of caves and tunnels run under the villages of Idlib; they date back to about 3,000 BC
according to the Free Syrian Army who are now using these to invade regime forces.
What are those?
Supplies as well as sleeping gear for the
Free Army soldiers. This is a resting point.
There is enough oxygen reaching the caves to allow the fighters a leisurely smoke.
We are ready to burn ourselves like this cigarette,
to bring happiness to our people.
There are several entry and exit points which are used by the fighters to surprise their foes.
How many times did the army try to find this tunnel?
Of course, the army besieged us many times
and we slipped through many times.
The next day we travel to Bilal Al Khabin's hometown of Sarmeen....controlled by the rebels.
It seems no one, not even this young boy, has been left untouched by the war.
I deserted from the army because I couldn't open fire on unarmed people. I never imagined
that one day I would carry a rifle and aim it at the Syrian people.
One of the Free Army tasks was protecting demonstrations, but now the town is liberated
and neither the security forces, the thugs, nor the army can enter the town.
But Bilal and his men cannot offer complete
protection. Two days after our visit here the town is shelled. Four people die and 15 are injured.
Back on the road, it is not long until we come to one of the many rebel roadblocks.
God is great! We'll cut off Bashar al--Assad's head.
You hear, Bashar?
The rebels are hard pressed to counter the might of the Syrian army. No country will
supply them with heavy weapons so they make do with what little they have got. This load
will become landmines.
The mines don't cost much, they are old water pipes. Fertilisers, urea.... We mix it with
material... It does not cost much.
No, no, don't tell her. Enough sister. God willing, the regime will fall during Ramadan.
Bilal wants to show me where some of the weapons
are being manufactured. In this secret garage they are making mortars.
This is the lid and we put the propelling
charge in here and separate it from the explosive tip with this. Then the tip is fitted, but
it is not ready yet.
These weapons cost about $50. They are highly unpredictable and will travel only a few kilometres
but with China and Russia vetoing UN Security Council intervention in the war it is all
the rebels have.
Compared to the military might of the regime...there is no room for comparison.
The crude devices have little military impact
but they do raise the morale of the rebel fighters.
If we don't make these, how can we fight?
We'll show them.
There's no tip fitted. The explosives tip isn't ready yet. We'll try it on the mountain.
He is keen the try out his new mortar and
takes us to a remote villa where his soldiers are based and finds them cooling off from the heat.
Arm up! When I say arm up, do it straight away! Arm up! Hurry up! Faster, faster!
We'll now try out a locally made mortar cannon. Okay? We will aim at the foot of the hill. March!
This may look like a rag-tag militia, though
some have fought in many battles. But I'm about to see just how much they need good equipment.
Hold it until I tell you to release it.
After many futile attempts, the mortar trial is a failure. Back to the drawing board. As
night falls, Bilal can only curse Syria's leader and those who will not offer the rebels military support.
Damn you, Bashar. Damn his father. God punish you, you lowlife. All because of Bashar al-Assad.
He has brought us despair.
Damn the Europeans for what they are doing, lying to us.
Russia and China are ***. The Chinese
dragon and Russian bear.
America and Europe hide behind the Russian veto. Lies and despair.
And they lie to us.
Months of fighting have left many here exhausted
and one reason they have few international backers is that so little is known about these fighters.
In a bid to find out more about this army, I seek out its leader. He is here in this military camp back across the border in Turkey. Journalists and cameras are strictly
forbidden. But Syrian opposition figures help get me into this inner sanctum and this is
the rebel commander, Colonel Riad al--Asaad, a career soldier he defected from the Syrian
army last year. Now the regime in Damascus wants him dead. Colonel Riad is receiving
fighters from the strategic Syrian city of Aleppo.
The Colonel has a troop in the Aleppo countryside.
Welcome.
They have come here seeking financial support.
We gave a lot, I swear. We are spending our
own money. We need you to care for us. I swear, I'm begging for money. I contacted many people
asking for money, but in vain.
It's the fault of those outside who aren't helping us.
They think the colonels and officers in Turkey
are getting lots of money. We have the same goal.
Colonel Riad has nothing the offer them, but
he does want them to go into battle. He asks the fighters to link up with other brigades
in the region it is a rare glimpse into the command structure of the rebel army.
Shall we coordinate with Mohammad Bakour?
Yes, and with Lieutenant Colonel Hekmet who
commands the 2nd brigade in the area, so we can link Idlib with Aleppo. We have groups
north of Aleppo and in Ajaj and the city itself. So the aim is coordinate with each other.
The meeting is interrupted by a phone call
from a rebel supporter in the Syrian capital, Damascus.
So who was killed there?
There has been a devastating attack by suicide
bomber against key Government figures.
They just confirmed that Hasan Turkmani is wounded and he is in Shami Hospital, but we
want to know if the defence minister is dead. They confirmed that Turkmani is injured and
is in Shami Hospital but the news is that the defence minister was killed.
News says Defence minister Daoud Rajha was
killed. If this is confirmed, then he'd have been the main target. We are trying to confirm this.
They try to establish who has been killed, but it is not easy sitting in a tent in Turkey.
Do you want to claim it in a statement?
Let's wait for the details. Daoud Rajha was killed. I'll confirm it first.
They confirmed it. The regime confirmed his death.
This is the Defence Minister's funeral in
Damascus. He died along with the President's brother-in-law and two others, a telling blow
by the opposition forces. It seems that Colonel Riad has no qualms using a suicide bomber,
the preferred method of al-Qaeda.
This is an integral part of revolutionary action and of Free Syrian Army action. We
are able now to carry out operations that could break the regime's back.
Colonel Riad has made a short trip to Istanbul
for a series of meetings with high-level Turkish officials.
Massacres are committed daily against the
Syrian people and no one is standing by them. There is political talk, but what we need
now are practical steps, we need practical action on the ground to end the bloodbath
and stem the blood flow in Syria.
But stopping the bleeding in Syria may depend on whether the rebels can achieve victory any time soon.
Do you exercise command and control over all the groups fighting in Syria? Do you tell them what to do?
There are general instructions, we issue general instructions. But as you know, in guerrilla
wars in general, the commander is in charge. Commanders have the freedom to act because
sometimes contact can be lost, but they can't ignore general instructions and they abide
by them in military action.
And the West is now worried that al-Qaeda is fighting alongside his rebel soldiers.
There is no popular acceptance of extremists or al-Qaeda in Syria. We see this as a fabrication
on the part of the regime. We know that al-Qaeda does not exist at all in Syria.
What will you do if the regime falls tomorrow?
There are instructions to control security for an interim period
until elections are held or a democratic government is formed.
But preparations have been made, we have been preparing for this for several months.
What do you feel when you look out at Istanbul?
There's peace here, but there is none in Syria.
Whenever we look out and see the beautiful peace and security in Istanbul, we think of
the contrasting reality in Syria and feel the pain. I feel very, very hurt despite
the beautiful scenery we see.
Just this suitcase?
That's it. Light and neat.
Even as Riad prepares to travel back to the military camp, the battle for Syria has now
reached its second-largest city, Aleppo.
Free Syria Army brigades have been rounded up from surrounding provinces and pitched into the conflict, and Bilal Al Khabin's group is also taking part.
How many armed men are with you?
Four to five hundred armed men.
They face overwhelming odds, including dozens of tanks. Back in the military camp, Colonel
Riad says he is coordinating the fighters from Turkey, but this long drawn-out war is taking its toll.
A lot is required but you only have a little, so that is why sometimes I feel very tired, exhausted.
Yesterday the decision was made to enter Aleppo and a few battalions did enter it.
This requires a lot of effort, you have to provide them at least with ammunition in
case they are besieged, so they can continue their work. So it is tiring in that sense.
Despite the odds, these opposition fighters
are prepared to pay a high price for freedom.
We want Syria to be - or rather Syria must be a free, just, democratic, prosperous and strong Syria.
We consider ourselves enslaved, oppressed for 40 years, we seek to gain our freedom at any price.
No matter how much blood it costs.