CTVNews.ca Staff
Published Sunday, Jul. 29, 2012 6:43AM EDT
Last Updated Sunday, Jul. 29, 2012 8:42AM EDT
Syrian troops fired tank shells and artillery Sunday at neighbourhoods in the city of Aleppo as rebels tried to repel the assault and defend their strongholds in the country’s economic hub.
The bombardment was part of a government counter-offensive to retake control of districts that had fallen into rebel hands last week.
Syria's state-run news agency, quoting government officials, says troops will continue to pursue what they label as terrorists until the city of three million is purged of armed groups.
Mataz Suheil of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights told CTV News Channel there had been intense fighting in most neighbourhoods of Aleppo since the early hours of Sunday.
“It’s been very brutal on the ground. It’s no man’s land basically,” Suheil saidin an interview from London, explaining that government troops were bombarding neighbourhoods known to be rebel strongholds.
"These are vast districts of the economic capital of Syria," he said.
The rebels are estimated to be in control of up to half of Aleppo, Syria’s largest city. And the opposition claims itis holding its ground, even shooting down an attack helicopter on Saturday.
The battle for the former bastion of support for President Bashar Assad is critical for both his regime and the opposition.
Capturing Aleppo, “will be very critical for opponents who want to create a northern territory where they can establish a base," Suheil said.
Attempts to gain control of Aleppo began a week ago and the Observatory said about 162 people, mostly civilians, have been killed in the fighting, not including soldiers. An estimated two dozen people died during Saturday’s fighting alone.
There are concerns that Assad’s desperation to maintain control of the city will intensify the violence.
“This is the concern: We will see a massacre in Aleppo,” said Victoria Nuland, a spokesperson for the U.S. State Department.
Fears of a massacre were voiced in Canada as well Saturday.
“We think the regime is ready to kill as many people as necessary in order to regain back Aleppo,” said Khaled Sawaf of the Montreal chapter of the Syrian Canadian Council.
In a press conference on Friday, Canada’s Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird described the escalating violence by the Assad regime as “disgraceful”.
“There will be a day of accountability for what’s going on,” he said.
On Sunday, Suheil said his organisation fears for the tens of thousands of Syrian nationals who have fled to refugee camps in Lebanon and Turkey. He said they are being persecuted and are wholly dependent on non-governmental organizations for their wellbeing.
“There have been protests happening in the refugee camp in south Turkey. In Lebanon, there are more than 20,000 Syrian refugees. Some are undocumented, fearing persecution by pro-government forces. The Lebanese government has stopped giving them medical aid and stopped feeding them.”
Suheil urged the UN refugee agency to do more to help Syrian refugees in Turkey and Lebanon.
According to human rights groups, up to 19,000 people have been killed since the Syrian uprising began in March 2011.
With files from The Associated Press
