Syrian rebels down helicopter gunship: NGO

Beirut: Syrian rebels downed a helicopter gunship on Friday in eastern Damascus province, home to some of the rebel Free Syrian Army's fiercest and best organised battalions, a monitoring group said.

"It emerged that the rebels downed a helicopter gunship over the town of Saqba in the Eastern Ghuta area," said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Initially, the Observatory had reported that the aircraft was a fighter jet.