FSA Confirms Defection of Syrian VP's Cousin Colonel Yaarab al-Sharaa
Three Syrian intelligence officers have defected from the Damascus regime and sought refuge in neighboring Jordan, a spokesman for the rebel Free Syrian Army said on Sunday.
"Colonel Yaarab al-Sharaa, his brother Mohammed Kanaan al-Sharaa and Colonel Yasser Ali Hajj, who worked in political intelligence in Damascus, have defected and are in Jordan," Kassem Saadeddine told Agence France Presse.
Colonel Sharaa was head of the information department of the intelligence unit located in the capital.
The Sharaa brothers are the cousins of Syria's Sunni Muslim vice president, Farouq al-Sharaa.
The government of President Bashar Assad has yet to confirm or deny the report.
Many soldiers of various ranks have deserted from the Assad regime since the start of an uprising in March 2011, some of them forming the Free Syrian Army.
Source: Agence France Presse
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