Activists Report Heavy Fighting in Syria’s Aleppo
Syrian troops clashed with rebels in the city of Aleppo for a second day Saturday, forcing inhabitants to flee to safer areas in some of the fiercest fighting to date in a key bastion of support President Bashar Assad, activists said.
The rebels are trying to seize the momentum after a week of battles in the capital, Damascus, including a bombing that struck at the heart of the regime, killing four high-level officials.
Two days of clashes in Aleppo’s Salaheddine district brought sustained fighting to the city’s center for the first time since the uprising began in March 2011.
The city, a commercial hub and Syria’s largest population center, has remained largely loyal to Assad and been spared the kind of daily bloodshed that has plagued other cities.
But Aleppo-based activist Mohammad Saeed said dozens of fighters from the rag-tag Free Syrian Army entered Aleppo from the countryside and were fighting regime troops from inside.
“This night was very bad, there were huge explosions and the gunfire didn’t stop for several hours,” Saeed said via Skype. “The uprising has finally reached Aleppo.”
Damascus and Aleppo are both home to elites who have benefited from close ties to Assad’s regime, as well as merchant classes and minority groups who worry their status will suffer if Assad falls.