(CNN) — In an escalation of its civil war, Syria is firing more Scud missiles in a desperate attempt to quash rebel gains, the NATO chief said Friday.
The government has launched more missiles in recent days, according to Anders Fogh Rasmussen, the secretary-general of the alliance.
“I can confirm that we have detected the launch of Scud type missiles,” he said. “I consider it an act of a desperate regime approaching collapse.”
Though the missiles have not hit Turkey, he said, the development highlights the need for a protection plan for the neighboring nation.
A Turkish Foreign Ministry official told CNN on Friday that some Scuds had been fired from Damascus toward Aleppo early Thursday.
As far as I know, (there were) four, (landing) around Aleppo and/or close to our border, but not in Turkey,” said the official, who spoke on condition that he not be named because he is not authorized to speak on the record for military matters.
The move is an escalation on the war, which has threatened to draw in neighboring countries and militant groups.
Earlier this month, NATO and a U.S. official accused Syria of using Scuds. Those missiles did not land on the Turkish side of the border but “came close,” said the U.S. official, who did not want to be named, citing the sensitivity of the matter.
U.S. military satellites confirmed the infrared signature of the four short-range Scud missiles launched from the Damascus area into northern Syria, according to the official.
Analysts say the government of President Bashar al-Assad maintains up to 400 of the short- and medium-range Russian-developed Scud missiles.
In return, the United States and Germany will send Patriot missiles and troops to the Turkish border, a warning to besieged al-Assad, officials said this month.
The Syrian civil war started in March 2011 when a government crackdown on civilian demonstrators morphed into a fight between the regime and rebels.
The conflict has seized the attention of world powers for months because of the relentless brutality and the deaths of tens of thousands of people.
