First report: Tue Aug 9, 2016 4:45pm BSTApproximately 6:45pm or 18:45 Syrian Time
Syrian government forces and their allies recaptured territory from rebels in southwestern Aleppo on Tuesday, Hezbollah's Al Manar television and pro-Damascus Al Mayadeen reported.
The advance, supported by heavy air raids, seized an area of called Telat al-Snobarat on the southwestern outskirts of Syria's largest city, according to Al Mayadeen. It cut off a rebel route into the opposition-held east of Aleppo that insurgents had opened just days before in a surprise advance against government forces, the channels said.
2nd Report:Adds additional info and some rehash stuff, which I will not include. Tue Aug 9, 2016 9:35pm IST
British-based monitoring group the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights could not immediately confirm the government forces' latest advance, but said fighters from Lebanese Shi'ite group Hezbollah, which supports Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, were involved in the battles.
Why can't SOHR confirm the advances? They're tight with the terrorists. Is it really that they do NOT WANT to confirm the advances?I'll update as soon as possibleLast update to above Reuter's news:
A rebel official denied there had been a government gain. "There's no advance, nothing," said Abu al-Hasanein, a senior commander in Fateh Halab, the coalition of moderate rebel groups inside the city.
"The situation is good. There's a lot of bombing, but the brothers (fighters) are taking cover, until they start a new phase" in the battle, he said.Ahmed Hamaher, a spokesman for the Nour al Din al-Zinki insurgent group, said government forces had briefly overrun an area called Telat al-Snobarat, as reported by a pro-Damascus channel, but had been beaten back and the territory was recovered by rebels.
Of course SOHR now confirms the rebel claims:
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said government forces had not taken control of the southwestern areas that would cut the rebel corridor, but had temporarily blocked movement of insurgents with bombardments.
Therefore SAA has blocked/cut off the rebel route! Temporarily, SOHR claims. Hopefully permanently! UPDATE! UN Urges Ceasefire
By REUTERS | Aug. 9, 2016
UK Gov Talking Head Peter Wilson Blathers
UK Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations at the Security Council Arria-Formula Meeting on Aleppo Under Siege
I think the panellists here have show today that they have done their part. I think now the question for us is what can we do and how do we play ours?
Update # 2:
Syria talks should not rest on halt in Aleppo fighting - Russia @ the UN
Russia warned on Tuesday that the next round of Syria peace talks should not be contingent on a halt to fighting in Aleppo after U.N. Syria envoy Staffan de Mistura told the U.N. Security Council he aims to reconvene negotiations in late August.
Speaking after a closed door meeting of the 15-member council, Russian U.N. Ambassador Vitaly Churkin told reporters: "The lower the level of violence the better it is for the talks... but there must be no preconditions for the talks."
Churkin called on countries with influence over the Syrian opposition to make sure they are prepared for future talks.
"They were coming to the talks without saying anything, they were just saying (Syrian President Bashar) 'Assad must go' and this is not a negotiating position," he said.