Syria: Offensive Starts In Aleppo; Assassination Of Russian General Denied

The Syrian army on Wednesday launched its ground offensive against Aleppo’s rebels attacking with tanks and armored vehicles the rebel district of Salaheddine, said a security source in Damascus.

“The offensive began in earnest,” the security source was quoted as saying. “The army advance and Salaheddine is cut in half. The recovery of this neighborhood will take some time although a few pockets of resistance will remain,” predicted that source.

“The regime’s forces have advanced across the street of al- Malaab with tanks and armored vehicles and fierce fighting are currently taking place in this area, “said, for his part, Ayoub Wassel, the brigade commander of Nur al-Haq, which is part of the Free Syrian Army (FSA).

According to the Syrian security official, at least 20,000 soldiers are currently in Aleppo while the number of the rebels hits between 6,000 and 8,000 men. The insurgents say they hold half of the city.

Meanwhile, statements by the Frees Syrian Army on the assassinating of a Russian General named Vladimir Kodjiev are a provocation, said on Wednesday a source within the Russian Ministry of Defense. “There is no General by this name,” the source said.

The Syrian rebels had earlier announced the killing of the Russian General Vladimir Kodjiev, who allegedly served as an adviser to the defense minister and military commander of Syria.

As an evidence, Al Arabiya TV channel aired the footage of his ID.