Syrian army bombards rebels in Aleppo – Cyprus Mail Cyprus Mail

A man walks with the aid of a crutch past damaged buildings in the old city of Aleppo June 27, 2015.

LONDON: Syrian rebels, led by Islamist groups, have reportedly launched a massive offensive to take over the northern city of Aleppo, a rights watch group said.

On Thursday, clashes hit Syria’s Aleppo between rebels of the Shamiya Front and the pro-regime forces, local activists reported.

According to SOHR, rebels fired hundreds of rockets and missiles into government-controlled areas of Aleppo on Thursday, killing at least four civilians and wounding more than 70. It has been partitioned into zones of government and insurgent control since 2012.

It added that the Syrian troops had responded by returning fire and conducting air strikes.

A new Islamist rebel alliance, including Al Qaeda’s Syrian affiliate, was locked in a fierce battle Friday to seize government-held areas of Aleppo, the divided ex- economic capital. They told NPR they are not part of the offensive. The Syrian war has drawn foreign fighters from across the Muslim world, including rebels from Central Asia.

The rebels said that they have formed a new alliance, called “Ansar al- Shari’ah”, which aims “to liberate the city of Aleppo and its countryside and to endeavor with the other factions to develop a joint charter to govern Aleppo after liberation according to Islam[ic] rules”.

Meanwhile, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said his country would take military action in Syria only if there was an imminent security threat.

More than 230,000 people have been killed in Syria since its conflict began in March 2011.

The military source said the rebels had bombarded government-held parts of Aleppo with weapons including highly destructive “hell cannons” – improvised mortar bombs made out of cooking gas cylinders.

In the historic southern town of Palmyra, “Islamic State” (IS) reported it had destroyed six archeological pieces that were confiscated from a smuggler.

“Army units supported by the Lebanese resistance this morning launched a major operation in the Zabadani region in Damascus province”, Syrian state television announced.

Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman said that opened potential lines of attack against several other government-held neighbourhoods. ISIS has similarly been advancing from the east, and this could rapidly become a four-way fight. The battle surprised the regime, but also surprised more moderate rebels, some trained in a covert U.S. program.