Syrian army advances in east Aleppo, thousands of civilians flee battered city

Aleppo: Syria’s army advanced in east Aleppo Sunday in a devastating assault that has placed it in control of more than half the former rebel stronghold and sparked a civilian exodus. Tens of thousands of civilians have fled eastern neighbourhoods of the battered city since President Bashar al-Assad’s regime began its latest offensive in mid-November. Overnight, government troops and allied forces seized the district of Tariq al-Bab where heavy fighting had raged a day earlier, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. [caption id=“attachment_2897898” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Representational image. Reuters[/caption] On Sunday, regime forces also secured a zone around the road from regime-held west Aleppo to the international airport just east of the city, taking two whole districts while fighting continued in a third. The government has now recaptured around 60 per cent of eastern parts of the city that rebel forces seized in mid-2012, the monitor said. The advance has prompted more civilians to flee, heading either further south into remaining rebel-held districts or crossing into areas under regime or Kurdish control. Assad’s forces have made swift gains in east Aleppo, and its loss would be the biggest blow yet to Syria’s opposition in the more than five-year war. More than 3,00,000 people have been killed since the conflict erupted with anti-government protests in March 2011, and over half the country’s population has been displaced. Around 310 civilians have been killed in the government’s assault on east Aleppo since 15 November, according to the Britain-based Observatory. At least 69 civilians have been killed in the same period by rebel fire into west Aleppo, it says. The government has trumpeted its advances, with state television today showing buses full of residents going from west Aleppo back to their homes in neighbourhoods retaken by the army. “The army is advancing bit by bit according to plan,” Brigadier General Samir Salman said. He said it was determined to “carry out its job of chasing terrorists in the eastern districts and elsewhere”, referring to the rebels. Rebel forces have struggled to hold back government ground units, who have advanced backed by air strikes, barrel bombs and artillery fire. On Saturday, the insurgents rolled back some regime gains in the Sheikh Saeed district on Aleppo’s southeastern outskirts, but it was unclear how long they could hold that line. Sheikh Saeed is close to the last parts of Aleppo still in rebel hands — densely populated residential neighbourhoods where thousands have sought refuge from advancing regime forces. The Observatory said rebels brought down a Syrian air force plane overnight near Aleppo airport, killing both pilots.