Reports say hundreds of foreign-backed insurgents, including a 1000-strong brigade from the so-called Sham Army, have defected to the notorious Takfiri group in recent days.

The defectors travelled from their base in the northwestern Syrian province of Idlib to the ISIL stronghold city of Raqqa last weekend.

In addition, several brigades affiliated with the Western-sponsored Free Syrian Army (FSA) have pledged allegiance to ISIL in the east of the country.

The defections raise questions about the US military support for groups it classifies as 'moderate militants.'

On July 8, the Saudi daily Akkaz confirmed in a report that the foreign-backed insurgents have received the second batch of US-made anti-tank missiles.

The Takfiri terrorists have reportedly received TOW anti-tank rockets in the strategic al-Qalamoun region in Syria.

Last month, the White House asked Congress for half a billion dollars in aid for insurgents operating against the Syrian army troops.

Anti-Syria militants have frequently called on the West to provide them with sophisticated weaponry and more military support.

The United States has also announced that it would arm and support what it commonly describes as “the moderate opposition” in Syria.

The ISIL insurgency in Syria has also spilled over to Iraq where the Takfiri terrorists have overrun large swathes, committing acts of terror including mass-killing and rape.

Syria has been gripped by a foreign-sponsored insurgency war since March 2011. An estimated 160,000 people have reportedly been killed and millions of others displaced due to the crisis fueled by the Western-backed militants.

A British defense report said that about 100,000 militants, fragmented into 1,000 groups, are fighting in Syria against the government and people.

NTJ/MB