ERBIL, Kurdistan Region—Heavy fighting between rebel and regime forces in Aleppo continued with rebels denying government claims of retaking territory.
The Syrian army claimed to have recaptured territory lost to the rebels when they broke the government’s siege on eastern neighbourhoods of the city, according to pro-Damascus media.
Al-Manar TV, aligned with Hezbollah which is fighting alongside the army in Syria, reported that regime forces, backed by airstrikes, had closed off the corridor opened by the rebels.
The media outlet reported that army bulldozers destroyed barriers and fortifications erected by the rebel groups in the Ramousah Road area.
The rebels denied the advance. “There’s no advance, nothing,” Abu al-Hasanein, a senior commander in the Fateh Halab coalition of moderate rebels, told Reuters. “The situation is good,” he added, saying that though there was a lot of bombing, fighters were able to take cover.
Various rebel and Islamist groups joined forces to break the siege from the southwest and succeeded in cutting through the government forces on Saturday.
The Financial Times (FT) reported that the rebels’ success was due in part to a shipment of new weapons, money, and supplies from international backers.
“At the border yesterday we counted tens of trucks bringing in weapons,” a Syrian activist told the FT anonymously. “It’s been happening daily, for weeks,” he added, “weapons, artillery — we’re not just talking about some bullets or guns.”
Two rebels who spoke with the FT said that they believe the money and supplies came from Middle Eastern countries that support the rebels against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, such as Saudi Arabia and Qatar. The goods were trucked into Syria across the Turkish border.
While the fighting in Aleppo continues to rage, the United Nations is again expressing concern for the safety of the civilians in the city and has called for a full-fledged ceasefire or, at a minimum, weekly 48-hour cessations in hostilities in the city in order to deliver humanitarian aid.
Russia has warned, however, that the issue of a ceasefire in Aleppo should not be used to derail peace talks, tentatively set to reconvene in late August.
"The lower the level of violence the better it is for the talks,” Vitaly Churkin, Russia’s ambassador to the UN, said on Tuesday. “But there must be no preconditions for the talks."
Churkin urged countries that have relations with and some influence over rebel groups to ensure they come to the negotiating table with attainable objectives.
"They were coming to the talks without saying anything, they were just saying 'Assad must go' and this is not a negotiating position," he said, criticizing the opposition’s position in previous rounds of talks.
The Syrian army claimed to have recaptured territory lost to the rebels when they broke the government’s siege on eastern neighbourhoods of the city, according to pro-Damascus media.
Al-Manar TV, aligned with Hezbollah which is fighting alongside the army in Syria, reported that regime forces, backed by airstrikes, had closed off the corridor opened by the rebels.
The media outlet reported that army bulldozers destroyed barriers and fortifications erected by the rebel groups in the Ramousah Road area.
The rebels denied the advance. “There’s no advance, nothing,” Abu al-Hasanein, a senior commander in the Fateh Halab coalition of moderate rebels, told Reuters. “The situation is good,” he added, saying that though there was a lot of bombing, fighters were able to take cover.
Various rebel and Islamist groups joined forces to break the siege from the southwest and succeeded in cutting through the government forces on Saturday.
The Financial Times (FT) reported that the rebels’ success was due in part to a shipment of new weapons, money, and supplies from international backers.
“At the border yesterday we counted tens of trucks bringing in weapons,” a Syrian activist told the FT anonymously. “It’s been happening daily, for weeks,” he added, “weapons, artillery — we’re not just talking about some bullets or guns.”
Two rebels who spoke with the FT said that they believe the money and supplies came from Middle Eastern countries that support the rebels against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, such as Saudi Arabia and Qatar. The goods were trucked into Syria across the Turkish border.
While the fighting in Aleppo continues to rage, the United Nations is again expressing concern for the safety of the civilians in the city and has called for a full-fledged ceasefire or, at a minimum, weekly 48-hour cessations in hostilities in the city in order to deliver humanitarian aid.
Russia has warned, however, that the issue of a ceasefire in Aleppo should not be used to derail peace talks, tentatively set to reconvene in late August.
"The lower the level of violence the better it is for the talks,” Vitaly Churkin, Russia’s ambassador to the UN, said on Tuesday. “But there must be no preconditions for the talks."
Churkin urged countries that have relations with and some influence over rebel groups to ensure they come to the negotiating table with attainable objectives.
"They were coming to the talks without saying anything, they were just saying 'Assad must go' and this is not a negotiating position," he said, criticizing the opposition’s position in previous rounds of talks.
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