rocket
© Ammar Abdullah / Reuters
Foreign states have supplied Syrian rebels with surface-to-surface Grad rockets in response to the Russian-backed offensive in Aleppo, according to Fares al-Bayoush, rebel commander of the Free Syrian Army.

Rockets for the Grad BM-21 multilaunch systems with ranges of 22km and 40km have recently been supplied in "excellent quantities," Reuters news agency reported on Wednesday, citing Colonel al-Bayoush. The colonel did not specify exactly how many rockets had been received.

Al-Bayoush claims the rockets are to be used on battlefronts in Aleppo, Hama and the coastal region of Syria, adding that this type of ammunition had not previously been supplied to the rebel forces. He said, however, that the rebels are already using Grad rocket stocks they had previously captured from Syrian Army reserves.

The commander told the news agency there has not yet been any sign of the rebels receiving anti-aircraft missiles they had requested from their foreign partners.

The weapons have been supplied to the Free Syrian Army through a US-backed coordination center in Turkey, the news agency reports.

Al-Bayoush said the newly supplied missiles have already been used by rebels against government positions near Aleppo.

A video posted online on Monday showed Free Syrian Army rebels firing Grad missiles, allegedly targeting government forces near Aleppo. Colonel al-Bayoush confirmed the rockets were from the newly-acquired systems, Reuters reports.