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Syria conflict: 'Dozens killed' in Aleppo battle Syria conflict: 'Dozens killed' in Aleppo battle
(about 5 hours later)
Dozens of people are reported to have been killed in fierce clashes between rebel groups and government forces in the divided Syrian city of Aleppo.Dozens of people are reported to have been killed in fierce clashes between rebel groups and government forces in the divided Syrian city of Aleppo.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said rebels advanced into government-held western districts overnight but were pushed back by Wednesday morning.The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said rebels advanced into government-held western districts overnight but were pushed back by Wednesday morning.
The battle was the most intense in Aleppo for more than a year, it added.The battle was the most intense in Aleppo for more than a year, it added.
Russia later said attacks by jihadist militants allied to the rebels had disrupted a plan for a temporary truce. Later, the US said an agreement has been reached with Russia to extend a truce in Syria to include Aleppo.
Defence ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov was quoted by Russian news agencies as saying that a "regime of calm" in Aleppo lasting 24 hours had been due to take effect on Tuesday. The Syrian military confirmed it would observe a 48-hour ceasefire in the city.
But, he added, the plan was shelved following deadly ground and rocket attacks on government-controlled areas by al-Nusra Front, an al-Qaeda affiliate. A surge in fighting in Aleppo in the past two weeks has killed almost 300 people.
Meanwhile, activists reported that government warplanes had carried out more than 20 air strikes in the rebel-held eastern Ghouta outside Damascus, after the regime of calm declared by the government around the capital on Saturday expired. The nationwide cessation of hostilities brokered in late February by the US and Russia, which back opposing sides in the war, is close to collapse.
A surge in fighting in Aleppo in the past two weeks has killed almost 300 people and left the nationwide cessation of hostilities brokered in late February by the US and Russia, which back opposing sides in the war, close to collapse. A coalition of rebel groups fighting under the name "Fatah Halab" (Aleppo Conquest) launched the assault on the government's defensive lines in the west of the city on Tuesday by detonating a tunnel bomb, the AFP news agency reported.
A coalition of rebel groups fighting under the name "Fatah Halab" (Aleppo Conquest) launched the assault on the government's defensive lines in the west of the city on Tuesday by exploding a tunnel bomb, the AFP news agency reported. Intense gun battles, air strikes and artillery attacks went on through Tuesday night. Intermittent clashes continued on Wednesday.
There were intense gun battles, air strikes and artillery attacks throughout the night, and clashes were still going on intermittently on Wednesday. Activists also reported that government warplanes carried out more than 20 air strikes in the rebel-held eastern Ghouta outside Damascus, after a freeze in fighting declared by the government around the capital expired.
There were conflicting accounts of the outcome of the battle. On Wednesday, the US State Department announced that an extension to the cessation of hostilities had been agreed with Russia on Tuesday.
The Syrian Observatory, a UK-based monitoring group, reported that the rebels initially made gains, but were eventually driven back by government troops, backed by fighters from Lebanon's Hezbollah movement. "Since this went into effect today at 00:01 (local time; 21:01 GMT on Tuesday) in Damascus, we have seen an overall decrease in violence in these areas, even though there have been reports of continued fighting in some locations," a US statement said.
A rebel fighter told the Reuters news agency that some ground had been captured from the government side, while a military source said the attack was repelled. Al-Nusra, an al-Qaeda affiliate that is allied to a number of rebel groups, is excluded from the cessation of hostilities.
The rebel said about 40 pro-government fighters and 10 rebels had been killed, according to Reuters. The military source denied there were heavy army casualties, but said dozens of civilians and many rebels had been killed.
The state news agency, Sana, meanwhile reported that three civilians had been killed by rockets fired at two government-held districts by al-Nusra militants.
Al-Nusra, which is allied to a number of rebel groups, is excluded from the cessation of hostilities along with the rival jihadist group Islamic State (IS).
The government and its ally Russia say only al-Nusra positions in Aleppo are being targeted, but the opposition and the US accuse them of indiscriminately attacking civilians and rebels abiding by the cessation of hostilities.The government and its ally Russia say only al-Nusra positions in Aleppo are being targeted, but the opposition and the US accuse them of indiscriminately attacking civilians and rebels abiding by the cessation of hostilities.
Aid agencies say Aleppo is on the brink of humanitarian disaster. Large parts of the city have been destroyed and its infrastructure has been severely damaged, leaving civilians without water and electricity. UN humanitarian adviser Jan Egeland complained later on Wednesday that the government was still refusing to allow aid deliveries to hundreds of thousands of people in besieged areas of Syria, including rebel-held eastern Aleppo.
The UN Security Council will discuss the violence in Aleppo later on Wednesday. "It is a disgrace to see that while the population of Aleppo is bleeding, their options to flee have never been more difficult than now," he told reporters in Geneva.
German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier and his French counterpart, Jean-Marc Ayrault, will also meet UN special envoy Staffan de Mistura and Syrian opposition leader Riad Hijab in Berlin to discuss efforts to end the five-year war, which has left more than 270,000 people dead. French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault asserted that the Syrian government bore full responsibility for the bloodshed in Aleppo.
"What is happening in Aleppo is a tragedy that requires a stronger reaction," he said at the start of talks in Berlin with his German counterpart, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, UN envoy Staffan de Mistura and Syrian opposition leader Riad Hijab.
Russia meanwhile said it had withdrawn about 30 aircraft from its airbase in Syria, including all of the Su-25 ground attack planes stationed there.
The Russian military began the withdrawal of most of its forces from Syria in March, six months after launching an air campaign to bolster President Bashar al-Assad.