Russia has attacked parts of the Syrian city of Aleppo after areas were seized by rebels opposed to the regime of President Bashar al-Assad.
In recent days there have been the biggest attacks on the Syrian government in years and the withdrawal of its forces from Aleppo, the country’s second largest city.
The Russian military played a major role in keeping Assad in power following the outbreak of civil war in the country in 2011, but Saturday’s strikes were the first in Aleppo since 2016.
More than 300 people, including at least 20 civilians, have been killed since the attack began, according to the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR).
The civil war has been quiet since the 2020 deal, but opposition forces still control the northwestern city of Idlib and the surrounding province.
Idlib is only 55 kilometers from Aleppo, which was also a rebel stronghold until it fell to government forces in 2016.
The latest attack, launched on Wednesday, was led by the jihadist group known as Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and allied groups backed by Turkey.
HTS was considered one of the most effective and deadly groups in the Assad regime and was already a force in Idlib.
Rebels have taken control of Aleppo’s airport and dozens of nearby towns, according to SOHR.
They also announced a curfew that came into effect at 17:00 local time (14:00 GMT) and will remain in place until Sunday.
The Syrian army said the rebels had launched a “wide-scale offensive on multiple axes in Aleppo and Idlib” and that the fighting had taken place “on a line of more than 100km (60 miles)”.
It says dozens of its soldiers have been killed and admits rebels have entered “large parts” of Aleppo.
Government forces said they had temporarily withdrawn from Aleppo, but added earlier that they were preparing for an offensive.
Pictures showed the roads leading out of Aleppo jammed with traffic on Saturday as residents tried to leave.
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