Rebel attacks kill 142 civilians in Aleppo since July 31: source

Up to 142 civilians have killed in rebel attacks in Syria's northern province of Aleppo since July 31, a military source told Xinhua on Wednesday.

An array of extremist groups unleashed what they called "Aleppo's Large Epic" battle on July 31, the source said on condition of anonymity.

A total of 48 children, 31 women, and 63 men have been killed, in addition to 672 injuries, mostly women and children, the source added.

The rebel attacks, which included firing mortar shells and improvised rockets, targeted several districts in the government-controlled part of western Aleppo.

Meanwhile, pan-Arab al-Mayadeen TV put the death toll among civilians over the past week at 162, adding that over 662 others were wounded.

The rebel groups that unleashed the attacks are mainly Jaish al-Fateh rebels, in coordination with Ahrar al-Sham, Nour Addien Zinki, the Islamic Turkestan Party, Failaq al-Sham, and Jabeht Fateh al-Sham.

Jaish al-Fateh, an alliance of several rebel factions, was reportedly formed in March 2015 under the supervision and coordination of Saudi cleric Abdullah al-Muhaysini.

Some of its factions are active in the provinces of Hama and Latakia. The group, reportedly supported by Saudi Arabia and Turkey, seized most of Idlib province in northwestern Syria last year.

The Jaish al-Fateh rebel group earlier claimed that it had broken the siege of the Syrian army on rebel-held areas in the eastern part of Aleppo city after six days of strenuous attacks. Key areas said to have been captured include the military college and the southern town of al-Ramuseh.

Aleppo, the country's previous top commercial hub, has been divided since 2012 between a government-held west and a rebel-controlled east. Many observers believe that whoever controls Aleppo will gain the upper hand in any potential settlement in Syria.

Battles in Aleppo flared up last month, when the Syrian army, backed by the Lebanese Hezbollah group and Russian airstrikes, made sweeping progress in the northern countryside of Aleppo, severing the last supply route for the rebels in eastern Aleppo.

The move triggered counterattacks by the rebels, which fired mortars and rockets continuously on the government-controlled western part of the city. Endit