US-backed “Rebels” Face Defeat in Aleppo
NOVANEWS
By Bill Van Auken
World Socialist Web Site
In what is being described as the worst defeat for US-backed forces since the outset of the war for regime-change in Syria nearly six years ago, government troops, backed by forces from the Lebanese Hezbollah movement and Iraqi Shia militias, have retaken over 40 percent of eastern Aleppo, the last urban stronghold of the so-called “rebels.”
According to a report from Iran, which, together with Russia, is a principal backer of the Syrian government of President Bashar al-Assad, Syrian army units have conquered 20 square kilometers out of the total of 45 square kilometers making up eastern Aleppo.
The government advance has been extremely rapid, suggesting a rout of the US-backed militias. The ground offensive follows two...