Backed by Iran, Assad’s Forces and Hezbollah Advance Into Rebel-Held Aleppo

State TV said government troops were dismantling mines and explosives and continuing their advance. A lot of families are in the streets with no place to stay.

On Wednesday, 5,629 civilians, including 2,855 children, fled rebel-controlled neighborhoods for parts of the city that have been freed by Syrian forces, Konashenkov said.

The Syrian army and allies managed on Monday to regain control over the northern part of Aleppo eastern neighborhood, liberating seized the Sakhur, Haydariya and Sheikh Khodr districts from the terrorists who fled the battlefield.

It added that more than 100 militants laid down their arms and left eastern Aleppo through the special corridors.

The civil defense, also known as the White Helmets, is a rescue service that operates in rebel-held areas of Syria.

“As a president, al-Assad is responsible for the entire actions of the government and the military policy”, Dieckmann said, according to Andalou Agency.

“Syrian government forces have repeatedly launched unlawful attacks on Aleppo city displaying a callous disregard for the safety of civilians living in parts of the city controlled by armed opposition groups”, said Samah Hadid, Deputy Director for Campaigns at Amnesty International’s Beirut Regional office. State television showed footage of families disembarking from the green coaches used to transport civilians and surrendering rebels from retaken territory.

Some 6,000 civilians crossed into the Kurdish-controlled Sheikh Maqsoud district, the Observatory said.

Aleppo was one of the last cities in Syria to join the uprising against President Bashar Assad’s government. “All of eastern Aleppo has reached the peak of suffering – from the hunger, to the cold, to being cut off from the world”, said Mohammed Khandaqani, a medic inside the city, who described the situation as “the worst moment since the revolution began in Aleppo”.

Meanwhile, France on Tuesday called for an “immediate” UN Security Council meeting on Aleppo to tackle the “humanitarian disaster” in the besieged Syrian city.

And regime bombardment of the eastern districts killed six civilians, Abdel Rahman said.

“Under heavy bombardments now. In between death and life now, please keep praying for us”. Rebels hold patches of territory, mostly in the northwest, while Kurdish forces hold much of the northeast.

United Nations envoy Staffan de Mistura estimated last month that there were 8,000 rebel fighters in eastern Aleppo. An opposition retreat from its last strongholds in Aleppo would give Assad control of Syria’s four largest cities and coastal region, and could prove a devastating psychological blow to a rebellion that has been on the defensive since Russian Federation intervened to help Assad 14 months ago.

The opposition has steadily lost territory since Russian Federation began an intervention to bolster President Bashar Al Assad in September 2015.

Despite Assad regime claims that civilians are being prevented from leaving the east by the rebels, most residents contacted by VOA say they are more fearful of an insurgent collapse in their neighborhoods. A government victory, aided by the interventions of his Russian and Iranian allies, would significantly bolster his position in the global arena.

With rebel defenses crumbling in eastern Aleppo, Assad is on the brink of returning Syria’s largest city to his control.

Earlier, head of the German Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee Norbert Röttgen, along with other MPs, called on Berlin to impose more sanctions against Russian Federation over the offensive in Aleppo, and open an airlift to the militant-held areas similar to the historic Berlin airlift in the late 1940s. With the help of Russian military airstrikes and Iranian and Hezbollah ground forces, Syrian army offensives have steadily made progress in surrounding rebel forces.

This has cemented Iran’s key role in the conflict, which may have consequences in the future.