Army Officer Defection

Description

Lieutenant Abdul Razzaq Tlass of the 5th Army Group announced his defection from the Syrian army. Speaking via Al-Jazeera, he left over the massacres of citizens and denied the army was fighting armed groups. He claimed Bashar Assad's men were placing weapons and ammunition next to unarmed protesters to make it appear as though they were gunmen at Daraa and Sanamin. Tlass urged his fellow officers to give up protecting the Assad family and instead protect and defend civillians. He was from Homs-Rastan.