The helicopter that crashed near Aleppo was a Russian Mi-8 (file picture) which had reportedly been on an aid mission to the city. Daily Mail
Michael Weiss and Piere Vaux, Daily Beast: Why Did Russia Send ‘The Terminator’ on a Humanitarian Mission in Syria?
Russia’s Defense Ministry says the aircraft was returning from a ‘humanitarian cargo’ mission. If so, it was a strange model to use.
While we don’t yet know which rebel group shot down a Russian military helicopter in Syria today, killing all five on board, photographic and video evidence of the wreckage reveals that what Russia is presenting as a pacific tool of humanitarian aid was in fact an assault craft rigged with rocket pods.
According to General Sergei Rudskoy, the helicopter had been returning to the Russian-operated Hmeemeem Air Base, in the coastal province of Latakia, after delivering food and medical supplies to Aleppo when it was shot down by “ground fire.” He also claimed that the area where the copter crashed, near the city of Saraqeb, is controlled by Jabhat al-Nusra, the former name of al-Qaeda’s official franchise in Syria.
Yet no rebel group has yet claimed credit for the downing.
Read more ....
WNU Editor: My gut is telling me that this helicopter was transporting people, not supplies. Whether it was a combat mission or a humanitarian one .... we will probably never know.
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