Islamists Join Syrian Rebels in Military Airfield Attack

Syrian rebels, including an Islamist group branded a terrorist organization by the U.S., engaged in “intense” clashes with President Bashar al-Assad’s forces at a military airfield in the northern region of Idlib.

Opposition fighters appeared to be attempting to storm the Taftanaz airbase following heavy shelling, according to an e-mailed statement from the U.K.-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. The intense clashes left at least four rebels dead and one helicopter damaged, the observatory said. The opposition group said Jabhat al-Nusra, designated a terrorist group by the U.S. last year because of ties to al-Qaeda, had joined the attack.