Before the war, Aleppo was Syria’s most populous city and home to a rich cultural history.
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The opposition Syrian National Coalition (SNC) congratulated rebels 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”.
A broad coalition of rebel groups posted videos Sunday of fighters roaming the Ramouseh district, where the siege was breached following overnight clashes.
The rebels hailed the breach as a major collaborative achievement a week after launching their counteroffensive.
Less than a day after rebel fighters broke through, aid arrived in the form of at least one truck carrying food that was driven by civilians from neighboring Idlib province, according to al-Achi and a doctor in Aleppo.
This video includes clips from Revolutionary Forces of Syria, Free Syrian Army, Step Agency News, Addana Today, Al Jisr TV and Aleppo Media Centre. “The regime is using cluster and vacuum bombs”, said Abu al Hasanien, a senior commander in Fateh Halab, the coalition of moderate rebel groups inside the city.
“The turning point was the fall of the artillery school”, said Islam Alloush, spokesman for the Jaysh al-Islam rebel group and a former Syrian army officer, who said artillery was always viewed as “god of war” in the military.
The rebel front line is now pushing northwest into western held Aleppo on the edges of the Hamdaniya neighbourhood and a housing estate called the 3,000 project, rebels and the Observatory said.
Rebel fighters from Jabhat Fatah al-Sham, formerly the al Qaeda-affiliated Nusra Front, released these images, which appear to suggest they now have access to armaments belonging to the Syrian army.
The U.N. says there are about 18 besieged and hard-to-reach areas, nearly all encircled by government forces.
Last month, the forces of Syrian President Bashar Assad imposed a tight siege on rebel-held eastern Aleppo, raising fears of a humanitarian disaster. The U.N. said 300,000 people were trapped, making Aleppo one of the largest besieged areas in Syria. The government and major ally Russian Federation had offered corridors for residents to leave rebel-held areas, an offer met with skepticism from the locals who viewed it as an attempt to depopulate the area. The Castillo road remains under government control but activists say it regularly comes under fire.
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Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said the development was one of the most significant setbacks for government forces since the conflict erupted in March 2011. About 500 fighters from both sides have been killed in the fight in Aleppo, the observatory said.
