Reuters, Turkey :US-led air strikes against al Qaeda-inspired militants in Syria pose a problem for moderate rebel opponents of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.The Western-backed rebels say they face a backlash from Syrians angered by the offensive, even though they have been kept in the dark about the air strikes against their enemies in Islamic State. This could complicate Washington’s plan to turn disparate rebel groups into a ground force to combat the militants.The rebels say civilian casualties from the week-old air campaign and suspicion of US motives are endangering the public support they have gained during their fight with Assad.”There is popular anger towards us,” said rebel commander Ahmed al-Seoud, who defected from the Syrian army in 2012 and leads a rebel group known as the 13th Division.His group defines itself as part of the “Free Syrian Army” – loosely affiliated non-Islamist factions, some of which are backed by donors including the United States and Gulf Arab countries that have supported the uprising against Assad.The 13th Division boasts 1,700 fighters and is in need of everything from boots to arms even though it has been a recipient of foreign aid. Its position as Western-backed means people see it as supporting the air strikes, said Seoud.”We support air strikes, but air strikes against Islamic State and the regime,” he said in an interview in the Turkish town of Reyhanli near the Syrian border.The United States says it is investigating allegations of civilian deaths from the airtakes great care to try to avoid them. Still, Syrians protested against the air strikes in several rebel-held parts of the country on Friday, footage posted on Youtube showed.While Washington has said it will not cooperate with Assad, who it says has lost legitimacy as leader of Syria, its air strikes have steered well clear of any government targets.
