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           Syrian Rebels Push for Total Control in Aleppo After Gains

   by Victor Beattie

   The fight for Syria's northern city of Aleppo has intensified with
   opposition groups pledging to pour in more fighters and fully capture
   the strategic area, while pro-government forces have responded to rebel
   gains with more airstrikes.

   The push comes after the rebels broke a three-week government siege of
   Aleppo.

   "Somehow they were able to get no less than 30 different armed factions
   to cooperate in breaking through the siege and taking over this heavily
   fortified military area, including an artillery school and a major
   base," regional analyst Stephen Zunes of the University of San
   Francisco told VOA.

   The Levant Conquest Front, formerly al-Qaida's branch in Syria, is a
   key piece of the rebel coalition fighting for Aleppo.  The government
   is just as keen on fully recapturing the city, which has seen fighting
   for most of conflict that broke out in March 2011 and has left hundreds
   of thousands of people dead across the country.

   "Whether this is just a temporary setback for the Syrian regime or a
   turn of the tide, they are no doubt going to continue to unleash heavy
   air power, which as we have seen over the past nearly five years has
   led to huge numbers of civilian casualties," Zunes said.

   ''

   The United Nations estimated last week that 250,000 people were trapped
   in Aleppo.  The situation there has been emblematic of other parts of
   Syria where either government forces or rebel fighters have besieged
   multiple cities, cutting people off from food and medical aid.  The
   U.N. has been able to make deliveries to some of the besieged areas,
   but has faced obstacles including certain supplies being barred from
   the convoys.

   Zunes described the physical destruction of Aleppo, Syria's second
   largest city at the start of the war, as well as the effects on its
   people that too mirror Syria at large.

   "The mosaic of different religious communities and ethnic groups has
   been shattered as the conflict, which initially started as a
   broad-based, non-violent, pro-democracy movement has descended into
   sectarian fighting which has divided Syrians from one another," he
   said.
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   [1]http://www.voanews.com/content/syrian-rebels-push-for-total-control-
   in-aleppo-after-gains/3455286.html

References

   1. http://www.voanews.com/content/syrian-rebels-push-for-total-control-in-aleppo-after-gains/3455286.html