Syrian government war planes have launched dozens of air strikes on rebel-held areas in and around Aleppo, activists say.
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Aleppo is divided between government and rebel control and has seen some of the worst fighting, which has thwarted diplomatic efforts to get the sides to move towards peace.
ISIL jihadists, thought to be on the defensive and in retreat in many areas, swept through rebel-held territory in a surprise offensive in Aleppo province late last month, cutting off the main road between Marea and Azaz – two main strongholds for anti-Assad rebels in the province.
In the northwestern province of Idlib, meanwhile, residents said Syrian and Russian jets bombed the rebel-held provincial capital, setting fire to a bustling market in the heart of the city.
The monitor said that had killed at least nine civilians and injured scores.
A correspondent in Aleppo said Friday’s bombing raids were the most intense in more than a week, with dozens of barrel bombs – crude, unguided explosive devices – hitting several eastern quarters of the city.
At least 280 000 people have been killed and millions displaced since Syria’s war started in 2011 with the brutal repression of anti-government protests.
Russia’s military intervention since September has helped to bolster Assad’s government.
The Russians had on Saturday accused militants from radical Islamic groups of bringing at least 1,000 fighters into an area in the southern Aleppo countryside.
“Nusra Front Militants fired mortars and multiple rocket launchers at the Burayj ar Rih district north of Aleppo”, a member of the Russian Defense Ministry’s center in Hmeimim said, Sputnik reported.
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Media from the Syrian regime claim the air strikes came in retaliation after Al Qaida’s Nusra Front escalated its attacks on regime-held areas with mortars.
