Battle of Aleppo (2012–2016)

Battle of Aleppo (2012)
Part of the Syrian Civil War
Date 19 July 2012 (2012-07-19) – ongoing Location Aleppo, Syria Result Ongoing FSA and SLA capture numerous districts in the southern and northeastern parts of the city in late July YPG takes control of two districts in the north-central part of the city Syrian Army recaptures most of Salaheddine district in early August and advances into Saif al-Dawla soon after Fighting continues in Salaheddine, with a stalemate late in the month
Belligerents
Syrian opposition Free Syrian Army Syrian Liberation Army Mujahideen Ahrar al-Sham Foreign fighters Kurdish Supreme Committee Popular Protection Units Kurdish Salaheddine Brigade	Syrian government Syrian Armed Forces Syrian Police Shabiha Al-Berri tribe Mardel tribes Local Kurdish militia
Commanders and leaders
Abdul Jabbar al-Oqaidi Taufik Shiabuddin (Salaheddine district)	Ali Abdullah Ayyoub Ali Mohamed Hamdan Yousef Ismail Zaino Berri (al-Berri Shabiha leader) †
Units involved
18 battalions Unity Brigade Sham Falcons Salaheddin Martyrs Brigade Abu-Bakr brigade Dara al-Shahbaa Brigade Nour al-Haq Brigade Nur al-Din Zinky Brigade	11th Division 18th Division Republican Guard
Strength
2,000–7,000 fighters (opposition claims) 6,000–8,000 fighters (government claims)	20,000 soldiers (1,500 Shabiha) 100 tanks and 400 armored personnel carriers
Casualties and losses
700 killed (government claims) 290 killed (opposition claims) Hundreds killed, 41+ technicals destroyed (government claims)	318 killed, 120–180 captured, 21–22 AFVs destroyed and 9–14 captured 1 MiG jet destroyed (opposition claims)
446 civilians killed

The Battle of Aleppo is an ongoing military confrontation in Aleppo, Syria between the Free Syrian Army and the Syrian military. The battle began on 19 July 2012 as a part of the Syrian civil war. Clashes began with an offensive by the Free Syrian Army against the city, which is the largest in Syria and holds great strategic and economic importance. The scale and importance of the battle has led to the battle being referred as "the mother of all battles".

Background

On 20 July 2012, large demonstrations against the Syrian Government took place in Aleppo. North of Aleppo city, the Free Syrian Army had already reached within nine miles of the city, after previously establishing control of several cities and towns, including Tel Rifaat, Azaz and Al-Bab in Aleppo countryside. The battle began when dozens of FSA rebels penetrated deep inside the city.

Battle

Rebel attack

Violent clashes began on 19 July in several Aleppo districts. On 20 July, the military shelled the city, with a LCCs spokesperson stating that "dozens of missiles fell in the city, and many houses were destroyed and flattened." Five explosions were heard in Aleppo early the next morning.

On 21 July, fighting was still raging in the southwestern Salaheddine district, with the army trying to storm it with troops and armored vehicles. Soon, the clashes spread to the poorer, tribal, northeastern district of al-Sakhour and the Haydariya area next to it. Hundreds of families were forced to flee as the commercial city had been slowly turned into a war zone. The head of intelligence in Aleppo, Major General Mohamed Muflih, reportedly defected to the opposition and went to Turkey.

On 22 July, the Syrian army tried to advance with armoured vehicles into the Salaheddine district, which was held by the rebels for two days. Fighting also took place near the main intelligence headquarters of Aleppo, the al-Zabadia police station and the city's immigration and passport building. Other clashes raged in the areas of Saif al-Dawla, al-Jameeliya and al-Meridian. At this time, the rebels were already in control of three Aleppo districts, with the FSA setting up checkpoints in the city. A brigadier general defected inside Aleppo. According to The Guardian UK, General Adelnasser Ferzat made a video address in fluent Russian to Russia, urging Russia to stop backing Assad and instead back the rebels' side.

The next they, the rebels launched an attack on the state TV station. The FSA used the situation to air a live steam video of their fighters moving freely in the Tareeq al-Bab district via Al Jazeera. A rebel commander inside Aleppo told Al-Jazeera via Skype that his fighters had captured five districts in the city, but that these districts were still being heavily shelled by artillery and attack helicopters. Meanwhile, state media reported that dozens of rebels had been killed by the Syrian Army north of Aleppo, among them Mahmoud al-Ashqar, leader of a rebel group. During the night, eight people were reported killed at Aleppo central prison. The Syrian National Council said that security forces "opened fire with bullets and tear gas on the detainees at Aleppo central prison in response to a peaceful sit-in organised by prisoners because of the great injustice of which they are victims," and that a fire broke out at the prison. Another report said that 15 prisoners were killed and over 40 were injured, according to Al Arabiya who were citing activists at the Aleppo Revolution Council. Furthermore, the group also said that security forces refused to hand over the dead bodies to relatives and that heavy clashes between the FSA and security forces took place around the prison after the killings. The Sham news network said that 30 security force members were killed or injured and three tanks destroyed in a neighbourhood of Aleppo during the day.

Fighting intensifies and Army reinforcements sent

On 24 July, the FSA launched an offensive in Aleppo, aimed at taking the city centre. Heavy clashes broke out near the gates of the Old city between rebel fighters and government forces. A resident of the Aleppo suburb of al-Sahkour said that the FSA had set up checkpoints in the district. The rebels and the Army also clashed in the Aleppo's suburb of Al-Arqoub. Later during the day, for the first time since the beginning of the civil war in Syria, Syrian war planes bombed Aleppo. The Army launched a coordinated attack that started with a 10-minute artillery attack on the eastern Tariq al-Bab district, after which, fighter jets hit rebel positions, leaving dozens of fighters and civilians dead. Government soldiers and rebels were still engaged in heavy fighting near the Old city, while the Free Syrian Army claimed that hey have captured one more district, a claim partially supported by a BBC journalist outside Aleppo. Two rebels were reported killed during the day. By this time, the government sent thousands of reinforcements from Idlib. One of the reinforcement's convoys was attacked with a roadside bomb while it was on its way to the city, killing eight soldiers.

By the next day, 25 July, the Free Syrian Army controlled a number of Aleppo's district, mostly in the eastern part of the city. The rebels attacked a police station in the city and burned it at the end, losing three fighters. Meanwhile, FSA commanders called on rebels to attack the approaching Syrian Army of 2,000 soldiers. Rebels from all over Aleppo governorate gathered ammunition and moved towards Aleppo. Rebels captured two Shabiha commanders and executed them during the day.

On 26 July, the Free Syrian Army claimed to be in control of 40–50% of Aleppo city. Government forces bombarded rebel-held districts with fighter planes, helicopters and artillery. Two rebel fighters were killed during clashes. Rebels were waiting for the military assault, most of them expecting to die in the battle. Among the government troop reinforcements that were massing on the outskirts of Aleppo were also special forces units. The Syrian Army had reportedly amassed 10,000 soldiers around Aleppo and its countryside.

On 27 July, rebels captured a military base in Aleppo's city centre along with 100 soldiers and pro-government militia. It was reported that 15 people were killed by helicopters and bombs in the al-Fardous district. An activist, Omar, said that "We woke up to a huge massacre this morning at 7am. Fifteen people were killed as a result of the regime forces' bombs and helicopters ... I witnessed the massacre myself and helped rescue 25 injured people. I carried bloodied body parts in my own hands. The bombing stopped at 10am." and the FSA later took control of the Sour al-Hajj roundabout in the district, capturing a five-storey building which was holding 75 detainees. State TV reported that five rebel technicals, pick-up trucks mounted with machine guns, that were heading from the countryside towards Aleppo, were attacked and destroyed by special forces units, killing and wounding a number of rebel fighters. A rebel commander partially confirmed this by saying opposition forces had skirmished with the military in the areas surrounding the city. Meanwhile, six soldiers were killed during clashes with a Kurdish rebel force, the YPG, who attacked them in retaliation after government troops attacked their convoy on the airport road the previous day, killing three and wounding 11 YPG members.

Salaheddin raid

On the morning of 28 July, the Syrian Army started an attack against the Salaheddin district, which held the largest concentration of rebels. The assault commenced with an eight-hour artillery bombardment, which started at four in the morning, after which tanks and ground troops moved in. An estimated 80–100 tanks were seen on the southern outskirts of the city before the attack started. The opposition stated that 12 rebels and 10 soldiers were killed during the fighting, that dozens of soldiers were wounded, and that 8–10 tanks and armored vehicles were destroyed. They also confirmed that one of the killed rebel fighters was a battalion commander. Meanwhile, rebels from Salaheddin attacked a police station in the city center where 50–100 government troops were holding out for the past three days, in an attempt to link up with opposition forces in the northeastern Sakhur district six kilometers away. By the end of the day, the rebels had repelled the assault with government troops pulling back and the bombardment resuming.

On 29 July, a Turkish journalist reported that Syrian soldiers defected to the opposition in Aleppo with four tanks. Luke Harding from the Guardian reported that a rebel commander was pessimistic about the chances of victory for the rebels. In the evening, state media reported that the Salaheddin district was recaptured by the Army; however, journalists were not able to reach it and confirm the report. Opposition SOHR activists said that fighting was still ongoing in the district. However, Colonel Abdul Jabbar al-Oqaidi, head of the Free Syrian Army military council of Aleppo, denied the report and insisted government troops had "not progressed one meter." "We launched a new assault from Salaheddin during the night, and we destroyed four tanks," the rebel commander told AFP by phone." Rami Abdel Rahman, the head of the Syrian Observatory of Human Rights, said that government forces were "just reaching the outskirts of the [Salaheddin] neighborhood."

Continued rebel push

On 30 July, SOHR said that clashes erupted in the early morning near the Air Force intelligence headquarters in Aleppo's Zahraa district. Meanwhile, a general in the FSA said that they had seized a strategic checkpoint 5 km from Aleppo after 10 hours of fighting. This meant that the FSA controlled a direct route between the Turkish border and the city of Aleppo. During the battle it was reported that four or five rebels and six soldiers were killed, with an additional 25 soldiers taken prisoner. An AFP journalist on the ground said that the rebels captured seven tanks and armoured vehicles, and destroyed an eighth vehicle. According to another rebel claim, four tanks were captured and two destroyed in the attack on the checkpoint. The BBC reported that three rebels commander were killed in Aleppo the same day, when one unit was pinned down by loyalist gunfire. FSA reinforcements manage to breakthrough and relieve their besieged comrades and pull back to safety.

On 31 July, Syrian state media reported that nine rebel technicals were destroyed in the Aleppo countryside and 26 rebels were killed in Aleppo city. Three other rebels were arrested when the army captured a truck loaded with explosive devices. One day earlier, four other rebel technicals had been destroyed. British Foreign Office minister Alistair Burt said that there was evidence government forces had recaptured some territory in the city, but the opposition forces were still strong.

Meanwhile, the rebels were still on the offensive when they launched an assault before dawn on a major Air Force Intelligence Unit in Aleppo's Zahraa district. Rebels armed with rocket propelled grenades attacked Aleppo's main military court as well as a police station and a branch of the ruling Baath Party in the city's southern Salhin district. Fighting continued in the Sallahaddin district. The opposition group, Syrian Observatory, reported that 40 policemen had been killed when rebels overran two police stations in fighting that also killed eight rebel fighters. A local Aleppo tribe, the al-Berri, carried out an assault on a rebel-held road, killing 15 rebels. It was reported that they executed people with their hands behind their backs near the airport.

The rebels also summarily executed 7-14 members of the al-Berri, including Zayno Berri, the leader of the tribe. Later during the day, the Free Syrian Army continued operating in the Salaheddine district, which the government stated it did no longer fully control. "The regime has tried for three days to regain Saleheddine, but its attempts have failed and it has suffered heavy losses in human life, weapons and tanks, and it has been forced to withdraw," said Colonel Abdul Jabbar al-Oqaidi, head of the Joint Military Council, one of several rebel groups in Aleppo. He announced the FSA's primary objective was to secure the city centre within days by advancing district by district towards it, clearing out government forces. He confirmed that opposition troops controlled the southern and eastern parts of the city or, as he described it, as some 35%-40% of the city.

State media later reported that a rebel leader Ahmad Haj Qasem bin Abdul-Rahman was killed in Aleppo. It was also claimed that the Syrian Army ambushed a group of 400-500 rebels with 30 technicals in the town of Handarat, north of Aleppo, inflicting heavy losses on them and destroyed their cars. International media has however reported that the Syrian offensive stalled, amid Free Syrian Army gains in surrounding areas such as the capture of the city of Al Bab.

Reuters reported that intensive battles were still going on in Salaheddine and that neither the rebels or the government were in control. According to an NBC News report, the rebels acquired nearly two dozen surface-to-air missiles, which were delivered to them via neighbouring Turkey. However, a rebel FSA spokesman denied the report. CNN reported that rebels were using a school as a prison, housing captured pro-government militia members. United Nations observers in the area saw Syrian Air Force jets bombing rebel held districts on 1 August.

Wounded soldiers of the Syrian army were treated by doctors sympathetic to the rebels in hospitals, before judging them in Sharia law courts, and executing them if found guilty of having been responsible for killings by Sharia enforcers. Rebels were passing to each other a video where they executed a shabiha and slit his throat afterwards.

Amnesty International reported that it had found the Syrian army to be responsible for crimes against humanity in Aleppo.

On 1 August, the Syrian press agency reported that the Syrian Army continued to search for armed groups in Handarat, killing and wounded tens of them, including foreign Arabs, and destroying some technicals. The Syrian Observatory confirmed the fighting in the Handarat area and said that a rebel battalion commander was killed in the clashes. The Sunni Al-Berri tribe announced that they would avenge their leader Zaino Berri, who was executed by the rebels. The Syrian Observatory confirmed that Berri tribesmen joined the fight in Aleppo after the rebel execution of Zaino Berri the previous day, and that the fiercest clashes took place between the tribesmen and the rebels in the Bab al-Nayrab district southeast of the old city. Meanwhile, rebels claimed to have destroyed 20 tanks and be in control of all the entrances to Aleppo, 9 districts and the airport. However, this was not independently confirmed. They also said they held a field trial for the captured Al-Berri, claiming there were judges and lawyers present. Those found guilty of killing were executed, with the others kept prisoner. Members of the Berri tribe denied they were part of the Shabiha and said that they stayed out of the fight until the rebels attacked their quarter.

The United Nations mission in Syria said its observers had witnessed government fighter jets opening fire on Aleppo, and tanks appeared on the rebels' side for the first time.

On 2 August, rebels attacked the Minakh military air base (or Menagh), 30 kilometres northwest of Aleppo, with four tanks they captured at the Anadan checkpoint. Rebels claimed that one of the captured security stations housed one Russian and three Iranian snipers, who escaped. "The Russian must have been valuable. Right at the end they sent 200 soldiers to get him out. We keep on hearing about Russians and Iranians. Also, we think some Hizbollah people are here as well." Meanwhile, journalists said that Rumours of foreign mercenaries in the pay of Assad, as well as the imminent launch of chemical weapons, were rife in the city, with no detectable evidence for either. Also absent were the hundreds of foreign Islamists who were allegedly present in the city.

Stalemate

On 3 August, the Syrian army escalated its shelling of the city significantly, with the main battle, according to the UN, being expected to begin over the next few days. Locals observed reinforcements to the Syrian army along the highway and rebels stated that they lost 50 fighters in fighting in Salaheddine during the previous several days as the clashes became more intense. Meanwhile, the rebels pulled back from their attack on the air base, which they had been shelling the previous day, after they failed to capture it.

On 4 August, rebels attacked the state television building in the Izaa district, but retreated after receiving heavy shelling.

A senior government source stated that the main offensive had not begun yet and said that the Army had mobilized at least 20,000 soldiers for the battle. He also added that the other side (the rebels) were sending in reinforcements as well.

On 5 August, the deployment of Syrian troops was complete. Rebels in some areas were forced to retreat due to intensive shelling, which killed two fighters during the morning, and government troops penetrating their lines. Later, opposition forces were making attempts to push back the military once again.

On 6 August, the rebel colonel in charge of the Aleppo Battle, Abdul Gabbar Kaidi, stated that the rebels were still fighting in Salahaddine, but were not in control of the district. He said that they were still there attacking checkpoints, but that the district was destroyed and full of army tanks. The media center of the Taweed brigade, located in the Sakhour district, was destroyed by an airstrike, while rebels attacked a checkpoint near the Aleppo University dormitories, destroying two armored vehicles. Fighting erupted near the Aleppo presidential palace, and government forces shelled rebel positions at the Palace of Justice and in the Marjeh and Shaar districts, while another rebel commander was killed in fighting in the Salahaddine area. FSA also controlled the ground on at least two sides of the Citadel of Aleppo, which was meanwhile under the Syrian army control, and were preparing for an attack on it. Rebels in districts of Aleppo visited by Reuters journalists in recent days seemed battered, overwhelmed and running low on ammunition after days of intense shelling of their positions by tanks and heavy machinegun fire from helicopter gunships.

A survivor of a killing by pro-government militia said that 10 prisoners, with loose links to the rebels, were executed in Aleppo. He was found injured and taken to be treated in a rebel-held town.

On 7 August, the ancient citadel in the center of the city, manned by government troops, was under siege, but military armored units were inching forward through Salahaddine from the southwest. The Syrian Army encircled rebels fighters in Salahaddine from two sides, where the rebels were running low on ammunition. Military snipers deployed in areas of the district on rooftops and tanks were stationed in the streets. Snipers were also positioned in the local roundabout where they were stopping rebel reinforcements and supplies to enter the district. One commander stated that five of his fighters were killed the previous day and 20 were wounded, but that the FSA still held the main streets. The FSA had reportedly advanced to the Bab Jnein and Sabee Bahrat districts of Aleppo where there were fierce clashes. In the north of the city, rebels made an attempt to advance into a Kurdish district, which was reportedly sympathetic to the opposition. However, earlier reports suggested that Kurdish militias were mobilised at the request of the government in the area, which seemed apparent as the Kurds clashed with the FSA fighters who entered the district. Fighting ceased after military jets bombed the area, forcing rebel forces to retreat. At this point, opposition activists confirmed that Aleppo had been completely surrounded by government troops. Meanwhile, rebels claimed they had seized a key army checkpoint, which connects the north-eastern outskirts of Aleppo with the city center.

State television said that the military had engaged a force of 150 rebels during fighting in the al-Asilah district, killing a large number of them and destroying four technicals.

It was also confirmed that the jihadist group Ahrar Al-Sham was fighting in Aleppo and cooperating with the rebels.

Army ground offensive

Battle of Salaheddine

During the morning on 8 August, the Syrian Army entered Salahaddine. A security official confirmed that the army had launched the ground assault on the rebels. He said that the army was advancing and cutting the quarter in two horizontally. He added that there were pockets of resistance but that it would not take much time to take control. A rebel commander also confirmed to AFP that the Syrian Army penetrated Salahedine with tanks but said that violent fighting was ongoing. He added that the army was present in less than 15% of the district. Government troops advanced into Al-Malaab Street. SOHR also confirmed the army stormed Salahedinne and described the clashes as the most violent in the district since the beginning of the battle.

What followed was a confused situation with conflicting reports. A security source from the Army told Hezbollah media Al Manar that the district came under the control of the Army. A Reuters team went to the area to confirm the government take-over and found rebel checkpoints that were present in Salaheddine for the past week to had disappeared. One lone rebel they encountered told the team "We have retreated, get out of here", and said that opposition forces had abandoned their positions. A FSA activist, Joma Abu Ahmed, said rebels had fallen back to the nearby neighborhood of Saif al-Dawla, which was coming under attack by army tanks located inside Salaheddine.

Syrian state TV reported that the majority of rebels had been killed in the district and that the Army had entered other rebel-held areas. It also said that dozens of rebels were killed in Bal al Hadeed and Bab al Nayrab. A military source stated that the Army controlled three quarters of the district and the rest was falling quickly with the majority of the fighting centering on two strategically important streets. He also said a further objective for the government forces was the capture of the Saif al-Dawla district to the west.

Soon after, the opposition Syrian Revolution General Commission and the Free Syrian Army denied the report by Reuters that rebels had abandoned the frontline district.

Other rebels also told a Guardian reporter that they were still in control while the Syrian State TV announced that the Army took control of Salaheddine main square. The Aleppo rebel leader, Jabbar al-Oqaidi, told AFP via Skype that "it is not true the regime army has seized control of the district." But said there was a "barbaric and savage" attack. The Guardian's Martin Chulov, who is close to Salaheddine, denied government claims that rebels had been driven from the area. He said the rebels admitted to a withdrawal, but of about "15 or so metres", from only a couple of streets. Although, earlier the Guardian's sources stated that the rebels were withdrawing and government forces were advancing. Later, the Guardian correspondent called the situation in the district a stalemate, with the rebel army reported to had taken back all positions and territory lost earlier.

Abu Firas, a member of the rebel Free Syrian Army, said the insurgents had left only one building in Salahedin "We did not withdraw, our guys are still there and the situation is in our favour. We just left a building that we had in one of the streets, but it's not like we are retreating". Rebels told an Al Jazeera reporter that some rebels units retreated but that others were still fighting. The Syrian army had made some progress but rebels did not abandon Salaheddine, an Al Jazeera correspondent there said, claiming that the FSA destroyed five tanks during the fighting and one MiG jet at the airport. The correspondent later visited the district and said that "the FSA is in full control of the area".

At the end of the day, Wassel Ayub, commander of the Nour al-Haq Brigade, confirmed a loss of five streets in the district. But said that rebel forces managed to take back three streets out of the five seized by the Syrian army after a counter-attack led by the reinforcements of 700 fighters sent from other quarters of Aleppo. He added that helicopters, aircraft and artillery were pounding the rebels in the district. The rebels also claimed to had made advances on positions around the Citadel in the heart of the Old city, though the Citadel itself and the central square were still under government control.

On 9 August, government media reported that hundreds of rebels had been killed in Salaheddine and that 70 were killed in Mayer, Aleppo countryside, the previous day. In contrast, the Syrian Observatory said that at least nine rebels had been killed. The Guardian reporter, that previously reported that rebels were back in control of all positions lost in Salaheddine, said that rebels did in fact left parts of Salaheddine at dusk the day before.

During the day, a Syrian jet hit four rebel bases in Tel Rifaat, 35 kilometers north of Aleppo.

The Guardian Reporter, who was smuggled out of Aleppo earlier, reported that rebels withdrew from two frontlines in Salaheddine at dawn and that only one rebel unit was staying in the district. Rebel commander Hossam Abu Mohammed of the Dara al-Shahbaa Brigade confirmed that the rebels partially withdrew from two streets in Salaheddine to the nearby Sukari district after intensive shelling on rebels positions but said that they were preparing a counter-attack. The rebels said that the shelling was unprecedented and talked of thermobaric bombs being used. 40 rebels were killed in the shelling. The Global Post reporter, James Foley, also added that the rebels withdrew from Bustan al-Qasr district after a heavy aerial attack. Although, a later report by a journalist on the ground stated that the district remained in rebel hands. The commander of the Fatah unit pulled back from Salaheddine to bring their five dead back to Tel Rifaat. He said that the Army was destroying the walls of buildings to advance through the district and that the large number of government snipers deployed during the morning surprised them and killed many of their fighters.

The Independent reported on the retreat of hundreds of rebels from Salaheddine, adding that many of them retreated straight out of Aleppo. Some rebels from the countryside were leaving Aleppo fearing that a quick takeover of the city could make their villages vulnerable. It was also reported that the Islamist brigades, which previously bragged about their fighting abilities, were the first to retreat from Salaheddine. At the end of the day, Army and Mukhabarat were searching houses in the abandonned district. The rebels also largely left the nearby Saifaldallah district, while the Dar al-Sabah brigade evacuated its headquarter in Bustan al-Qasar district far from Salaheddine, fearing that they would be surrounded from two sides by soldiers.

Later, the same commander previously quoted by AFP, said that the rebels completely withdrew from Salaheddine and that the district was now empty of rebel forces and that government forces were advancing in. Another rebel commander confirmed the withdrawal, stating that they left Salaheddine and wanted to open new fronts in Saif al-Dawla and Mashhad.

The pro-government Syrian press agency reported that the Army cleared al-Asiyleh and Bab al-Nassr quarters of rebels. In the Hritan area, Aleppo countryside, the Syrian Army engaged a rebel group and caused a large number of casualties among them. They reported that Libyans, Afghans and Yemenis were among the casualties.

On 10 August, the rebels were preparing on the frontline for a counter-attack, with 60 fighters positioned at Tenth street, with the aim of recapturing territory lost the previous day. At the same time, a shortage of weapons and ammunition among FSA forces was reported. Earlier during the day, an Iranian Press TV news crew made a filmed tour of Salaheddine with government soldiers, apparently showing Syrian troops in control of the quarter. An NBC news crew, meanwhile, reported that government forces bombarded the villages surrounding Aleppo, killing many civilians and driving out the rest, creating a 'no man's land' around the city so as to prevent the rebels from being resupplied. In the rebel-held Tariq al-Bab district in the east of the city, a dozen people were killed by an artilley strike, including at leat 3 children.

Al Jazeera reported that a rebel commander, Hossam Abu Mohammed, said that the FSA was still fighting in parts of Salaheddin, after most fled the previous day, in the face of heavy bombing and advancing troops. One other fighter told AFP the rebels were keeping at bay troops who control a key roundabout from advancing further into Salaheddin. "They have a few soldiers at the roundabout and some snipers. What we are doing now is preventing the troops from advancing," the fighter said on condition of anonymity. The FSA claimed three tanks were destroyed in that area. The Army again bombed parts of Salaheddin, as well as the Sakhur and Hanano districts in the northeast, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. The military also repelled a rebel attack on the airport, while a Mig-21 dropped a bomb in the courtyard of the FSA headquarters in Hanano, wounding a number of people. Meanwhile, the opposition stated that Army shelling had damaged the 13th-century Aleppo citadel.

On 11 August, a Reuters reporter visited the frontline to witness continued fighting at the roundabout, where Army reinforcements were still coming in. Rebel fighters, attempting to attack it, were being held at bay by tank and mortar fire.

SANA reported that government forces killed several rebels, including four Libyans, in Kafr Hamra, as they were heading toward Aleppo to reinforce opposition fighters. Another Libyan, a sniper, was reported killed the day before in the Jeb al-Qubba area near Bab al-Hadid.

Continued fighting

On 12 August, the Shaar, Tariq al-Bab, Sakhur, Hanano and Bustan al-Qasr districts all came under artillery bombardment, while the Saif al-Dawla neighborhood, next to Salaheddin, was hit by tank shells and a MiG jet fired missiles every few minutes at a rebel-held police station. Sniper and artillery fire was also directed against Saif al-Dawla and a rebel commander confirmed that Army tanks had advanced past the roundabout in Salaheddin, where there was fighting the day before, despite the resistance of some 150 rebel fighters. He also stated that rebel forces attacked the previous day a petrol station in Salaheddin, which was being used as a military base, and killed the base's commander. During the action they also captured a lot of badly needed ammunition and weapons. Sniper fire was still being reported in Salaheddin.

The pro-government newspaper al-Watan stated that the Army was poised to assault the Sukari neighbourhood, in the south of the city, after its recapture of the nearby Salaheddin district three days earlier. "The door to Sukari district, the second bastion of the armed men in Aleppo, is now open for the army," it said, adding that troops had "gained control of several axes, which would allow them to storm the area."

SANA reported that the authorities pursued an armed group in the al-Sfira area in the countryside of Aleppo upon the appeals of the residents who prevented the armed group from entering the neighborhood and called for the authorities to interfere. The clashes reportedly resulted in the killing of a large number of armed individuals and the wounding of several others, with five technicals destroyed. SANA further claimed that the authorities confronted an armed group at the entrance of Bab Antakia and killed a large number of them and wounded others. Further, the authorities set an ambush for an armed group near Aghiour Roundabout in Aleppo. A number of rebels were killed or wounded in the operation.

On August 13, following the capture of the Salaheddine district several days before, SOHR reported that the Syrian Army stormed the west of the Saif al-Dawla district. "They are now clashing with the rebels, and parts of Salaheddin are being shelled.", SOHR reported. Security sources in Damascus also stated that the Syrian Army was advancing on the rebel-held district of Sukari. The Observatory meanwhile said opposition fighters attacked a key air force intelligence branch in the western Zahraa district. At the same time, rebels made another attempt to attack the radio and television station in Aleppo.

Video footage emerged of several executions of prisoners in Aleppo province by rebel forces. Among them, a blindfolded man, claimed to be a pro-government militiaman, with his hands tied behind his back, had his throat cut multiple times in Aleppo city. Opposition activists claimed that rebels had nothing to do with the killings.

On 15 August, an Al Jazeera correspondent in Aleppo claimed that the FSA stopped the military from taking a new area of Salaheddin while fighting, accompanied by bombardment, continued in the Saif al-Dawla district and a MiG jet conducted an air-strike in the Shaar area. SANA, for its part, characterised the continued fighting in Salaheddin as cleaning operations against "remnants of the mercenaries". The state news agency also claimed that 32 rebel technicals were destroyed in the countryside of Aleppo, at least 12 of them as they were attempting to enter Aleppo City. Another 2 technicals were later reported destroyed in Saif al-Dawla. During the day, rebels reported that they captured Bab al-Nasr and surrounding area, forcing soldiers to retreat to the city centre. President al-Assad issued Decree No. 310 for 2012 on appointing Mohammad Waheed Aqqad as Governor of Aleppo.

On 17 August, the Syrian army confronted the rebels near the Cultural Center in Hanano area inflicting "heavy losses" them, SANA reported. A source in the province told SANA reporter that a number of the groups' leaders were killed in the operation. SANA alsto reported that an armed forces unit destroyed an ammunition warehouse near Adham Mustafa highschool in Saif Addolah neighborhood in and killed large numbers of the "mercenary terrorists", while another armed forces unit clashed with "terrorists" near al-Huda Mosque in the same area, killing and injuring a number of them. Also in Saif Addolah area, an armed forces unit clashed with "terrorists" who broke into a commercial complex, killing many of the terrorists and injuring others. The Army pursued an armed "terrorist group" in the area of al-Sleimanyeh in Aleppo city and killed a number of the "terrorists". Also the Syrian army claimed to have killed a number of leaders of armed groups in al-Klasah area. In Bustan al-Basha neighborhood, an armed forces unit, with the aid of locals, confronted a "terrorist group" which attempted to infiltrate the neighborhood and set up bases in it, clashing with the "terrorists" near Zahi Azraq Hospital and "killing many of them". Another armed forces unit chased down a group of "terrorists" in the neighborhoods of Qastal al-Harami and al-Sayyed Ali, killing 8 "terrorists" and injuring others. A government fighter jet blasted the top three floors of a five-story apartment building, killing a mother, father and their three boys. Buried in the rubble was a newlywed couple who moved in on their wedding night two months ago. Rebels searched for remaining civilians buried in the rubble. In rebel-controlled areas, more than half the city, the rebels faced few direct challenges on the ground but but can do nothing against government air and artillery strikes. The day before, artilley had hit a bakery killing 35 people and wounding another 50 who were queing up for bread.

Heavy fighting was reported at Aleppo International Airport, a strategic gateway to the country's largest city. According to SANA, rebels were "pushed out from areas on both sides of the airport".

On 18 August, a source in Aleppo province told a SANA reporter that the armed forces confronted an armed "terrorist" group near the Faculty of Sciences in Aleppo inflicting big losses among the "terrorists" and arresting others.The source added that a unit of the army killed and wounded dozens of "terrorists" near the Radio area in Aleppo city. A unit from the armed forces clashed with an armed "terrorist" group in Rityan village in northern Aleppo killing and injuring its members.The army unit also destroyed an ammunition storehouse for "terrorists" in the same village which included a large number of RPG launchers and charges. Further the same day cleaning operations areas included those of al-Andalus school, al-Hayat Hospital, Rahmo Khatab school, al-Hamiyat Hospital and Ahmad Saeed school. The Syrian army also claimed to have taken the area of Maysaloun Hospital from the rebel groups.

On 19 August, Syrian State TV claimed that the Syrian Army captured the Saif al-Dawla district.

On 20 August, an opposition activist claimed rebels made advances in the Jdeydeh historic quarter and the Tilel street, however the report could not be independently verified. The Japan's TV reporter Mika Yamamoto was killed, she was the first foreign journalist to die in the city since clashes between rebels and regime forces erupted there almost a month ago. However, on 21 August, Syrian TV video reports showed Syrian Army troops gaining entire control over Jdeydeh quarter, al-Hatab square, Farhat square, Tilel street and the surrounding alleys and areas.

On 21 August, both the rebels and the military made competing claims of advances in the city, neither of which could be independently verified.

On 22 August, rebels tried to make an advance in Saif al-Dawla, but their attack was repelled by heavy mortar and RPG fire. At one point, their retreat was cut-off. Syrian forces shelled Aleppo and two neighbouring towns. The army bombarded rebel weapons stocks in the Aleppo region to prevent the arms from reaching the rebels in the city and the reinforcements from both sides are heading to Aleppo, stated the security official.

On 23 August, the military reportedly recaptured three Christian neighborhoods in the Old City from the rebels, according to several residents contacted by AFP. The districts of Jdeide, Tela and Sulamaniyeh were captured by opposition forces five days before. The main rebel commander had, earlier in the day, claimed that rebel fighters were near the districts.

Foreign reactions

• France - The French Foreign Ministry said that "With the build-up of heavy weapons around Aleppo, Assad is preparing to carry out a fresh slaughter of his own people", while Italy and the UN peacekeeping chief also accused the government of preparing to massacre civilians.

• Russia - The Russian Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov, stated "Our Western partners ... together with some of Syria's neighbours are essentially encouraging, supporting and directing an armed struggle against the regime". He also added that it would be unrealistic to expect Syrian forces not to fight when armed fighters were occupying Aleppo. "How can you hope that in such a situation, the government will simply reconcile itself and say 'All right, I was wrong. Come on and topple me, change the regime'?"

• Turkey - Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan urged international action, saying it was not possible "to remain a spectator" to the government offensive on Aleppo. Reuters reported that Turkey had set up a base with allies Saudi Arabia and Qatar for the purpose of directing military and communications aid to the Free Syrian Army from the city of Adana. Reuters also quoted a Doha-based source which stated that Turkey, Qatar and Saudi Arabia were providing weapons and training to the rebel fighters.

• United Kingdom - William Hague, the British Foreign Minister, also said that "the world must speak out to avert a massacre in Aleppo".

• United States - The United States said it feared a new massacre in Aleppo by the government: "This is the concern: that we will see a massacre in Aleppo and that's what the regime appears to be lining up for."

External maps of the battle

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