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Syrian rebels retreat Aleppo district amid heavy shelling
Rebels have retreated from the key Aleppo district of Salaheddin under a deadly rain of shellfire, with the showdown battle for Syria's commercial capital raging into a second day. "We have staged a tactical withdrawal from Salaheddin. The district is completely empty of rebel fighters. Regime forces are now advancing into Salaheddin," Hossam Abu Mohammed, a Free Syrian Army (FSA) commander, said by telephone on Thursday. "The fighters are withdrawing to (nearby) Sukari district, where they are preparing a counter-attack." Abu Mohammed cited heavy shelling and the army's use of thermobaric bombs, which throw out a wall of fire to incinerate targets in enclosed spaces. Abu Mohammed said the shelling was "so heavy that we have a cloud of dust above Salaheddin". State television said: "Our special forces have cleansed Salaheddin district of terrorists." But Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said: "There are still some fighters inside Salaheddin; it seems they are there to fight to the death." FSA spokesman Kassem Saadeddine told AFP by Skype the withdrawal "does not mean we are leaving Aleppo. We have military plans to fight in the city, but we cannot reveal them." In Damascus, a security source told AFP regime forces were "advancing quickly" in Salaheddin towards Saif al-Dawla. Posted by: Pappy 2012-08-10 |
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