Riad al-Asaad, Syrian rebel commander, loses leg in bomb attack
Col. Riad Asaad, general of the Free Syrian Army.
Riad al-Asaad, commander of the rebel Free Syrian Army, lost one leg in a bomb attack on Sunday night, Agence France-Presse reported.
"An explosive device exploded last night near the car carrying Free Syrian Army commander Riad Asaad, who was conducting a tour of the town of Mayadeen in Deir Ezzor province," Rami Abdel Rahman, director of the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, told AFP today.
Asaad is being treated in a hospital in Turkey, and Turkish officials reported his condition as good, according to the AFP.
According to the Associated Press:
Al-Asaad is a prominent defector from the Syrian military who became head of the Free Syrian Army, an umbrella group that tried to gather rebel fighters under a unified command.
While Al-Asaad remains a high-profile rebel leader, his power has been eclipsed by Gen. Salim Idris of the Syrian National Coalition, who leads the Office of the Chiefs of Staff, the AP reported.
No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, the AP reported.
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