ALEPPO — Panic-stricken civilians crammed inside minivans, on the back of pick-up trucks and inside cars fled Saturday from strife-torn Syria's second city Aleppo. Crowds of tired men, scared women and children have been arriving at Atareb, about 30 km west of Aleppo, Syria's commercial hub that is now a key battleground, with regime forces launching an assault on the city. Troops backed by tanks and helicopter gunships moved on southwestern districts of Aleppo early Saturday, where rebels concentrated their forces when they seized much of the northern city on July 20. At least 29 people were killed, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said, contributing to a figure of at least 90 people nationwide. The watchdog said more than 20,000 people, the majority civilians, have now died since the uprising against President Bashar Al-Assad's regime erupted in March 2011. Troops backed by tanks and helicopter gunships, which had been massing for two days, moved on southwestern districts of Aleppo, where rebels concentrated their forces when they seized much of the northern city on July 20. Artillery pounded Salaheddin and other neighborhoods as ground troops advanced. Trapped civilians crowded into basements, seeking refuge from the bombardment. “The fiercest clashes of the uprising are taking place in several neighborhoods,” the observatory's Rami Abdel Rahman said. “The regime's forces tried to storm the headquarters of Salaheddin but, thank God, the heroes of the (rebel) Free Syrian Army repulsed the attack,” FSA Colonel Abdel Jabbar Al-Oqaidi said. “We have now destroyed eight armored vehicles,” he said. “There are 100 tanks massed on the outskirts of the district. “The battle will be hard because there is no balance of forces but we are determined and we have faith in God.” Russia warned a “tragedy” was looming but said it was unrealistic to expect the government would stand by when rebels were occupying major cities. “We are persuading the government that they need to make some first gestures,” said Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. “But when the armed opposition are occupying cities like Aleppo, where yet another tragedy is brewing as I understand... it is not realistic to expect that they will accept this,” Lavrov said. Meanwhile, Turkey, which has given refuge to defecting army officers who have formed the kernel of the FSA, warned it could “not remain an observer” as violence raged across its southern border. “We must do what we can together in the UN Security Council, and also in the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and the Arab League, to make sure that we can make some important progress in trying to avert this appalling situation,” said Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. — Agencies Golan Druze start to turn against Assad – P6
