SYRIA: Rebels pull back from parts of Aleppo as the fight for control continues.

Record ID: 281160

  • Title: SYRIA: Rebels pull back from parts of Aleppo as the fight for control continues.
  • Date: 9th August 2012
  • Summary: DRIVING THROUGH SALAHEDDINE NEAR SALAHEDDINE DISTRICT, ALEPPO, SYRIA (AUGUST 9, 2012) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF MEMBERS OF FSA SITTING IN GROUP, HOLDING WEAPONS (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) FSA COMMANDER OF IBN AAS BRIGADE, ABU ALI, SAYING: "The situation on the ground is that a lot of units withdrew from street 10 and street 15 because of a lack of ammunition. But we are deployed t
  • Embargoed: 24th August 2012 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Syrian Arab Republic
  • Country: Syria
  • Topics: Conflict
  • Reuters ID: LVA5A6J28MVFUCQGMNJQZ8NPYP1O
  • Story Text: Fierce fighting raged on in the Syrian city of Aleppo on Thursday (August 9), despite rebel forces fighting with the Free Syrian Army (FSA) peeling back from frontline areas in the district of Salaheddine.
    FSA commanders said a shortage of ammunition meant fighters were taking turns storming forward.
    "The situation on the ground is that a lot of units withdrew from street 10 and street 15 because of a lack of ammunition. But we are deployed throughout the city and we are about to send a unit to fight," said the commander of the FSA's IBN AAS Brigade, Abu Ali.
    The rebels fighting in Salaheddine, a southern gateway to the city, said they had been forced to fall back briefly from frontline positions on Thursday by a fierce bombardment which had reduced buildings to rubble.
    But they denied Syrian State television reports that government forces had re-taken the city.
    The centre of the district, near Salaheddine mosque, was abandoned when Reuters journalists visited on Thursday.
    The only sound was the constant echo of artillery shelling. There were no rebels, no security forces, and only a few residents darting in and out to pick up belongings and leave.
    "Everything fell on our heads. I came to check my house to see if it was destroyed or not. No more than that. I hope that everything will calm down and that everything will go back to normal and that the country will get back to normal," said one resident, as he inspected the area.
    Hundreds of homes and businesses in the area have been destroyed.
    The streets were covered in glass and rubble. Cars on the street had been smashed by falling debris, and the stench of uncollected rubbish permeated the area.
    The military, despite its advantage in tanks, warplanes and helicopters, has had to cede ground elsewhere as it struggles for control of Syria's biggest city.
    As part of a broader army offensive, Assad's forces attacked rebels on several fronts including a neighbourhood near the airport in southeast Aleppo, several eastern districts, and a town on Aleppo's northwestern outskirts, state media said.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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