Syrian army captures 93% of rebel-held areas

The Syrian government forces have become in control of 93 percent of the rebel-held areas in the northern city of Aleppo, the country's national TV said Saturday evening.

The majority of the rebel-held areas in the eastern part of Aleppo have recently fallen to the army, which is fighting to wrest control over the few remaining neighborhoods.

Meanwhile, at least 3,000 civilians fled the rebel-held areas of Sukari, Fardos and Salahuddien in eastern Aleppo toward government-controlled areas west of the city on Saturday, a military source told Xinhua.

A day earlier, nearly 5,000 evacuated eastern Aleppo.

The International Committee of the Red Cross said last week that over 30,000 civilians fled eastern Aleppo toward the government-controlled areas.

This comes as the Syrian government forces have been on a crushing offensive against the rebels in eastern Aleppo.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad also said that the decision for taking all of Aleppo has been taken, adding that the army recapture of rebel-held areas in Aleppo will change the course of the battles in Syria.

source: Xinhua