Syria: Helicopter Crashes in Damascus

Armed rebels in Syria say they have shot down a military helicopter over the capital, Damascus.

The Free Syrian Army said the aircraft had been firing at people in the north-eastern district of Jobar, and that it had crashed in neighboring Qabun.

State television confirmed that a helicopter had come down in Qabun.

Activists said regime forces killed at least 37 people in the suburbs of Damascus through army shelling and helicopter attacks.

There has been an outcry over allegations that government forces killed more than 300 people during an assault on the south-western suburb of Darayya.

Unverified video footage and photographs have emerged over the weekend showing scores of bodies, including those of women and children.

State media blamed the opposition for the killings and said Darayya had been “cleansed of terrorist remnants”.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said he was shocked by reports of “an appalling and brutal crime”.

He called for an independent inquiry into the allegations.

Meanwhile French President Hollande has urged Syrian opposition groups to form a provisional government.

He told a meeting of French ambassadors that France would recognize the government as “the legitimate representative of the new Syria”.

Host Marco Werman talks to journalist Thabet Salem who is there.

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Marco Wermen: Opposition forces in Syria today claim they shot down a government helicopter in the capital Damascus. A video apparently of that incident has been posted online. It can’t be independently verified but it appears to show an aircraft spiraling down in a ball of flames as fighters on the ground continue to shoot at it. A trail of black smoke follows the chopper as it falls from the sky and seems to crash in a residential area. Journalist Thabet Salem is in the eastern part of Damascus where he’s been gathering information about the incident.

Thabet Salem: According to a witness who was watching about ten minutes later when another helicopter showed up he said they substituted the old one with a new version of an aggression helicopter which is armor itself. Which means that one maybe was shot down by ground fire.

Wermen: What is Syrian television been saying about this incident?

Salem: Well they admitted the downing of the helicopter but they said maybe it was due to technical fault. They did not confirm it was shot down by fire.

Wermen: If it was shot down by fire one would assume that would be coming from opposition forces. What are the kinds of weapons they would need to bring down a helicopter?

Salem: They put a picture of a guy with a sort of primitive anti aircraft machine gun something like that. They said this is the one that shot it down. And it is not that sophisticated weapon. It is not a rocket or anything of that sort.

Wermen: Could an ordinary machine gun really bring down a helicopter?

Salem: Maybe because it was flying very, very low. After it was downed actually the helicopters started flying very high. Higher then they used to.

Wermen: Now you said you’re in eastern part of Damascus correct?

Salem: Yes.

Wermen: Right and that’s where there has been some shelling today. Is that in any way related to the downing of the helicopter?

Salem: No it started at 7 o clock in the morning. About 2 hours later or 3 hours maybe two hours and a half the helicopter was shot down. Started early in the morning the bands and the exposures were unbelievable. Different from any other day since the events started. But a few months ago we have never witnessed something like this.

Wermen: And in other parts of Damascus is the fighting as intense?

Salem: No.

Wermen: And why is that?

Salem: There’s something going on for ten days now. The caliber is really changing. It’s more fierce just continuous it coves major parts of Syria. And maybe this comes in preparation of the expected mission of the UN envoy in Syria. The UN and Arabian ward Brahinian is scheduled to start his you see that man hear the bangs?

Wermen: Was that a concussion from a shelling?

Salem: Yeah Yeah

Wermen: Are you in a safe position?

Salem: Oh yeah I’m at my place actually. I’m safe position but because you know the bangs the explosions are very huge so you can hear them.

Wermen: Journalist Thabet Salem in Damascus thank you very much and take care.

Salem: Thank you sir.

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Unverified amateur footage shows an aircraft on fire, apparently plummeting into the Al Qabun area of Damascus.