President Bashar al-Assad has said that the army's battle with rebel forces would determine the fate of his country, and praised soldiers for confronting what he said were "criminal terrorist gangs".
"The fate of our people and our nation, past, present and future, depends on this battle," Assad, who has not spoken in public for two weeks, said in a written statement marking armed forces day on Wednesday.
Reports up to early pm Aleppo time today are that Assad's forces has recruited some local tribes in Aleppo to help out and is continuing the bombing while the rebels have acquired some additional heavy arms (including surface to air) assets. |