Syrian opposition fighters captured a strategic neighborhood near Aleppo's international airport on Saturday, to be in control of a key road that the regime has used to ferry supplies and reinforcements to soldiers fighting in the embattled northern city, AP quoted activists as saying. Elsewhere in the nation, fighting continued unabated, killing more than 60 people nationwide, according to activists. Troops loyal to President Bashar Assad and opposition fighters have been locked in a deadly stalemate in Aleppo, Syria's largest urban center and main commercial hub, since an opposition assault last summer. Seven months later, the opposition fighters hold large parts of the city and its outskirts, including several army bases. The capturing of the Sheik Said neighborhood, southeast of Aleppo, is a significant blow to regime forces because the area includes a major road, linking the northern city with the airport. The army has used the road to supply troops. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said opposition fighters captured the area Saturday after several days of fierce battles with Assad's troops.
