Syrian rebels ‘control most of the city’, observers say

Syrian rebel forces have taken control of “most” of the country’s second-largest city, Aleppo, according to the UK-based monitoring group Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR).

Russia launched airstrikes on parts of Aleppo on Saturday night for the first time since 2016, observers added.

SOHR said more than 300 people – including more than 20 civilians – have been killed since the attack began on Wednesday.

The attack is the biggest attack on the Syrian government in years and the first time rebels fighting President Bashar al-Assad’s forces have reached Aleppo since they were ousted by the army in 2016.

Aleppo’s airport and all roads leading into the city have been closed, military sources told Reuters news agency.

Rebels managed to capture “most of the city” without encountering much resistance, SOHR said early Saturday.

“There was no fighting” as Syrian government forces retreated, a BBC spokesman said.

“City council, police stations, intelligence offices – there is no one.

“This has never happened before.”

Earlier on Friday, government forces said they had regained positions in several cities in the province of Aleppo and Idlib, following attacks launched by HTS and its allies. on Wednesday.

A video posted by a channel affiliated with the Islamic terrorist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) appears to show rebels in vehicles inside the city.

BBC Verify shared the images from the western part of Aleppo.

AFP said one of its reporters saw “anti-government forces” in front of the city’s historic fortress on Friday.

More than half a million people have been killed in the civil war that erupted after the government took part in pro-democracy protests in 2011.

A number of armed groups opposed to the Assad government – including jihadists – have taken advantage of this opportunity to seize more territory.

The Syrian government – with help from Russia and other allies – later retook much of the territory it had lost.

Idlib, the last remaining opposition stronghold, is largely controlled by HTS, but Turkish-backed rebel groups and Turkish forces are also based there.

Syrian and Russian aircraft carried out 23 airstrikes near Idlib on Friday, according to SOHR.

The UK-based monitoring group, which uses a network of ground sources in Syria, said four people were killed and 19 others were injured in the Russian strikes.

The Russian military said it bombed “cheap soldiers”, according to Russian news agencies.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov expressed his support for “the Syrian government to restore the situation immediately” and said that the country’s sovereignty is under attack.

On Friday, a statement posted on a rebel-held channel said: “Our forces have begun entering the city of Aleppo.”

Videos confirmed by the BBC show armed men running down a road about seven kilometers (4.3 miles) from Aleppo’s medieval fortress in the city center.

Another clip confirmed by the BBC showed large groups of people carrying luggage from an area near the University of Aleppo. That video was recorded 3km from where HTS-affiliated media say rebel forces entered the city.

Aleppo resident Sarmad told AFP he heard “the sounds of missiles and gunfire all day and night”.

“We are afraid that a war will break out and we will be evicted from our homes again,” said the 51-year-old.

The UN’s deputy regional coordinator for Syria, David Carden, said he was shocked by the impact of the ongoing violence on people.

“The relentless attacks over the past three days have claimed the lives of at least 27 people, including eight-year-old children,” he said.

Fighting in Idlib has been deteriorating since 2020, when Turkey and Russia, Syria’s ally, agreed to a ceasefire to stop the government’s push to retake the province.

But on Wednesday HTS and its allies said they had launched their offensive to “stop the violence”, blaming the government and allied forces for the escalation in the region.

Analysts say another reason why they have advanced so quickly is because Syria’s allies, Iran and Hezbollah, have been weakened by Israeli attacks in the region.

Additional reporting by Lina Sinjab in Beirut and Richard Irvine-Brown, Merlyn Thomas and, Sofia Ferreira Santos and Paul Brown in London.