Syrian government forces have retaken a second rebel-held district in eastern Aleppo, military sources say. They say the army and its allies had “fully recaptured” Jabal Badro. Hours earlier, rebel sources confirmed that neighbouring Hanano district had fallen and was now under government control. Hundreds of civilians have been fleeing into the government-controlled areas of … Read more
Syrian government forces have retaken the largest rebel-controlled district in eastern Aleppo, state media report. The capture of Masaken Hanano, in north-east Aleppo, could give Syria’s army line-of-fire control over other opposition-held areas, activists say. The government resumed its offensive to retake eastern Aleppo on 15 November. Some 275,000 people are under siege. The assault … Read more
It’s a familiar scene: Syria Civil Defence, also known as the “White Helmets,” rushing to rescue a man covered in rubble, but unlike thousands of other videos from Aleppo, this one is staged. The short video — a take on the Mannequin Challenge — was created by the Revolutionary Forces of Syria (RFS), an opposition … Read more
France has accused Syria and its allies of using political uncertainty in the US to launch “total war” against opposition-held areas in the country and called for new sanctions on Bashar al-Assad’s government for the use of chemical weapons. Making the accusations after a weekly cabinet session on Wednesday, Jean-Marc Ayrault, France’s foreign minister, said … Read more
The number of people living under siege in Syria has doubled this year to almost one million, the UN says. Emergency Relief Co-ordinator Stephen O’Brien said the figure had jumped from 486,700 to 974,080 in six months. People were being “isolated, starved, bombed and denied medical attention and humanitarian assistance in order to force them … Read more
Children paying the price in battle for Aleppo A Syrian man carries a girl from a destroyed building after barrel bombs were dropped. A barrel bomb killed a family of six in rebel-held eastern Aleppo early on Sunday and rebel shelling took the lives of eight children at a school in the west, as one … Read more
A UN proposal to end heavy fighting in the city of Aleppo has been rejected by the Syrian government. Under the plan, rebel-held eastern Aleppo would remain under opposition control if rebel fighters withdrew. Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem, who met the UN envoy to Syria on Sunday, called the idea a violation of “national sovereignty”. … Read more
A number of major trauma hospitals in rebel-held eastern Aleppo are out of service after days of heavy airstrikes, the Syrian American Medical Society told CNN on Saturday. However, activists working inside the city said up to five other hospitals in eastern neighborhoods are still functioning. “For the first time, eastern Aleppo is out of … Read more
An air strike has hit a children’s hospital in Syria’s eastern Aleppo, forcing its medical staff to evacuate their patients, including several newborn babies still in incubators. The moment of the attack on Friday was captured by an Al Jazeera crew, including journalist Amr al-Halabi, who was reporting about survivors of a previous Syrian government … Read more
LONDON — A London tram was travelling at 70 km/h when it derailed and overturned on a bend with a speed limit of 20 km/h, killing seven passengers, an interim report revealed Wednesday. The official Rail Accident Investigation Branch’s (RAIB) is continuing an investigation into the tragedy which happened just after 6 a.m. local time … Read more
Air strikes and artillery have pounded rebel-held districts of eastern Aleppo for a second day, killing dozens of people, damaging medical facilities and flattening residential buildings. Sources told Al Jazeera on Wednesday that more than 50 people had been killed and dozens wounded in the past 48 hours, as air raids launched by Syrian jets … Read more
In early 2011, as the Arab Spring was moving across North Africa and the Middle East, small groups of nonviolent activists in Syria, which has been under martial law since 1963, started protesting against the brutal dictatorship of Bashar al-Assad and demanding democratic reforms, the release of political prisoners, an increase in freedoms, abolition of … Read more
US legislators have passed a bill that would sanction the government of Syria and its supporters, including Russia and Iran, for war crimes and crimes against humanity in the country. The bill was passed by the House of Representatives on Tuesday, imposing new sanctions on Syria and underscoring US determination to play a strong role … Read more
RIYADH — A Saudi-led coalition said that a missile fired from Yemen toward the border city of Najran was intercepted, Saudi Press Agency reported on Tuesday. The Saudi Royal Air Force destroyed the missile and targeted the source of the fire inside Yemen. (Saudi-Missile) CAIRO — An Egyptian court on Tuesday overturned a death sentence … Read more
Syria’s leader has said he hopes US President-elect Donald Trump will be an ally in fighting terrorism but remains “cautious in judging him”. Bashar al-Assad said Mr Trump would be a “natural ally” if he fulfilled a campaign pledge to fight terrorism. But he said it was “dubious” whether Mr Trump could “live up to … Read more
I admit I have lived my whole life with very little violence. When I listen and see the devastation in Aleppo, Syria, Afghanistan, Mosul, Burundi, Somalia and Northern Nigeria, I thank my stars that I am far removed from these countries and I don’t look forward to any of the Boko Harams, Al Shababs and … Read more
Few civilians took up the offer to leave rebel-held Aleppo during the pause in air strikes Warplanes have bombed besieged rebel-held eastern districts of the Syrian city of Aleppo for the first time in three weeks, a monitoring group says. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that the Haidariya, Masakin Hanano and Sheikh Faris … Read more
The last remaining food rations are being distributed in besieged rebel-held eastern districts of the Syrian city of Aleppo, the UN has said. Humanitarian adviser Jan Egeland warned that without a resupply there would be no food left to hand out next week to the 275,000 people living there. Mr Egeland ruled out airdrops of … Read more
Six stories you may have missed because of US election Iraqi Kurdish forces seized the town of Bashiqa near Mosul from ISIL, an official said While the US presidential race between Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton dominated international headlines on Tuesday, Russia announced that it was preparing to renew its air strikes on Syria’s Aleppo … Read more
The Syrian army says it has taken a strategic district of Aleppo in what would mark the most important advance in the divided city by the government and its allies in weeks. However, anti-government fighters say the battle is not over. The 1070 Apartments district is located on the southwestern outskirts of Aleppo and lies … Read more