Rebels attempting to overthrow the Syrian government have captured a key airbase near the Turkish border according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

The base had been a main target of the rebel forces since last year.

The base is located on a major trade route and supply line from Turkey. The rebels had been capturing different pieces of the massive airfield over the last few months until they had trapped about 70 government troops in the command center. The center fell in a raid from nine different rebel units Tuesday morning.

The attack started with a suicide bomb attack by a Saudi militant.

The capture came a day after government troops killed eight civilians including three children in a shelling of a residential area in Aleppo. Still, the rebels control a wide region of the northern part of the country.