In a desperate bid to break the siege, a coalition of rebels, Islamists and jihadists overran a series of buildings in a military academy on the southwestern edges of Aleppo Saturday before linking up with rebel groups inside the city.
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The battle for Aleppo, Syria’s largest city and former commercial heart, is pivotal for the Syrian civil war. It is not clear whether the rebels would be able to keep their new gains, but the breach causes a dent in the Syrian government’s new confidence and territorial expansion, bolstered by Russian air support.
Rebel forces made a breakthrough at the weekend, relieving the siege on the east of the city, where up to 300,000 residents were at risk of starvation.
The Hezbollah Brigades have deployed 1,000 fighters on Sunday, an official said. Harakat Al-Nujaba announced on Facebook that it sent 2,000 fighters.
Battles rage across Aleppo as Assad regime fights to quell rebels was posted in World of TheNews International – https://www.thenews.com.pk on August 09, 2016 and was last updated on August 09, 2016.
Al-Watan, a Syrian daily close to the government, reported Monday the army had received “the necessary military reinforcements to launch the battle to retake the areas from which it withdrew”.
The opposition Syrian National Coalition (SNC) congratulated opposition groups on making “spectacular gains (which send) a clear message to the Assad regime, Iran and Russian Federation that they will not be able to defeat the Syrian people or dictate the terms of a settlement”.
“Because our fighters are not only facing the Syrian regime but they are also facing the militias, Hezbollah, Iranian militias and Russian Federation”, he said at a news conference in Istanbul. “And the reason we managed to do that is simply because we, the revolutionary forces, chose to be united and act as united”.
Fighters from a coalition of opposition groups called “Jaish al Fateh” announced the start of a new phase to liberate the whole of Aleppo, saying it pledged to increase the numbers of fighters for the battle it said will only end by hoisting their flag on the ancient Aleppo citadel in government hands.
Castello Road was captured by government forces last month.
An AFP correspondent in the eastern districts said shelling and sporadic clashes were hitting Aleppo but there were no signs yet of significant new offensives.
“The good news is that all the groups participating do not have any links with terror organisations” such as Al-Qaeda and Islamic State, he said. The officer spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to talk to reporters.
Insurgents effectively broke a month-long government siege of eastern, opposition-held Aleppo on Saturday, severing the primary government supply corridor and raising the prospect that government-held western Aleppo might become besieged.
Osama al-Ezz, a physician working in the Aleppo countryside, said a nominal amount of relief has reached the formerly besieged quarters, but “not enough for empty stomachs”. This news story is related to Print/141176-Battles-rage-across-Aleppo-as-Assad-regime-fights-to-quell-rebels/ – breaking news, latest news, pakistan ne.
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A leader in Ahrar al-Sham, Mohammed al-Shami told Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper that by entering its fourth stage, opposition forces would have completed the plan they had placed ten days ago to control the city of Aleppo. It said no aid convoys to the opposition area were forthcoming.
