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Syrian army declares new offensive on rebel-held areas in Aleppo

Xinhua, September 23, 2016 Adjust font size:

The Syrian army announced Thursday new military operations on rebel-held areas in the northern city of Aleppo, a few days after a U.S.-Russia brokered truce expired, according to the state news agency SANA.

The new military offensive will target the rebel-held eastern part of Aleppo city, said the statement, urging the civilians to stay away from the positions of the rebel groups.

It added that the authorities in Aleppo have taken all measures to facilitate the accommodation of the civilians who are leaving the rebel-held areas.

The military offer also includes the rebels who want to abandon the insurgency.

Earlier this week, tens of civilians left rebel-held areas upon the renewed calls of the Syrian authorities for people to abandon rebel-controlled areas in eastern Aleppo.

A source told Xinhua that the political intelligence branch in Aleppo offered invitations to the civilians in eastern Aleppo to come to the government areas.

"You have 48 hours only, that's the time-frame the leadership has set," one of the messages said.

Battles in Aleppo, Syria's largest province, have raged over the past few months between the Syrian army and an array of rebel groups.

When the U.S.-Russia brokered truce went into effect in Syria on Sept. 12, calm prevailed Aleppo and other Syrian cities, but the violence renewed after the truce expired this Monday.

The Syrian army announced on Monday the end of the week-long ceasefire, without extending it, as part of the Syrian government dismay with the U.S.-led attack against Syrian military positions in Deir al-Zour earlier this week, which killed 90 Syrian soldiers, and the violations the rebels were said to have committed during the truce time.

Aleppo, located near the borders with Turkey, is Syria's largest city and once an economic hub. It has been a focal point of clashes between the Syrian army and the rebels.

The rebels laid siege to western Aleppo districts after cutting the international road to Aleppo in 2014, a siege broken later by the Syrian army with the help of Hezbollah. Endit