Syrian, allied troops advance on rebels in eastern Aleppo
ALEPPO, SYRIA — Syrian warplanes, artillery and mortar rounds pounded areas in eastern Aleppo on Saturday drawing rebel rockets, as government troops gain new ground in the shrinking opposition- held enclave.
After four years of holding nearly half of the divided city, rebel fifighters have been increasingly squeezed into the center of the eastern enclave.
Government and allied troops, including Lebanese, Iraqi and Iranian fifighters, have concentrated their fifight on the northeastern part of the enclave, swiftly taking new districts since their offffffffffffensive began last week. Another front on the southern outskirts of the city has been slower, as rebel fifighters push back government advances there.
The advances have caused massive displacement. The U.N. estimated that more than 31,000 have already flfled their homes, either to government or Kurdish areas, or deeper into the besieged enclave. The fifighting has also intensifified the rebel shelling of government-held areas in Aleppo.
T h e s t a t e b ro a d c a s t e r al- Ikhbariya said “precise operations” by government and allied troops aim to rout out “terrorists,” which is how the government refers to all armed opposition groups.
The sound of war pre - vailed in the city early Saturday. Warplanes made several runs overhead, drawing what appeared to be rebel machine gun fire toward the aircraft.
T h e R u s s i a n I n t e r f a x news agency report quoted an unnamed Syrian military offifficial as saying that a light ground att ack aircraft, L-39 jet, was shot down near Aleppo, and its crew was killed. The opposition Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which relies on a network of activists on the ground, said two pilots were killed when rebel fifighters targeted the aircraft as it approached Aleppo airport to the east of the city.
Asked about reports of the downed plane, Syrian army spokesman Brig. Gen. Samir Suleiman said “we have no such information about such an incident and when such things happen the army announces them.” He was speaking to reporters in Aleppo.
Suleiman said the Syrian army has regained control of 45-to-50 percent of east Aleppo, and accused insurgents of hiding among civilians.
Syria’s defense minister and other senior offifficers visited newly captured areas in Aleppo on Saturday, accord- ing to state-run media.
The Syrian Civil Defense in eastern Aleppo said six people were killed in bombings of the central al-Shaar neighborhood. Opposition news agency Thiqa also put the death toll at six. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights put the death toll at three, adding it was likely to rise. In government-held Aleppo, rebel shelling killed fifive people, according to the state news agency SANA.
To the south of the city, government cannons could be heard fifiring toward rebel- held areas.
R e s i d e n t s i n e a s t e r n Aleppo also reported intense shelling in al-Sukkari neighborhood on the southern edge of the enclave, where many of the newly displaced have sought refuge.
“The noose is tightening quickly,” said Mohammed Abu Jaafar, a medical offifficial in besieged eastern Aleppo. “Our resources are also running low and beginning to disappear.”