Russia's Defence Ministry said its air force had carried out strikes on Syrian rebels in support of the country's army, Russian news agencies reported on Saturday, amid an advance by forces opposed to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Syria's army has been forced to redeploy, in the biggest challenge to President Bashar al-Assad in years. Read more at straitstimes.com.

The surprise attack, led by the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, was the boldest rebel assault for years in the civil war that has been frozen.

Syria state media say government troops are battling insurgents inside the country’s largest city Aleppo for the first time since 2016

The Syrian military said on Saturday that rebels had entered large parts of Aleppo city during an offensive in which dozens of soldiers had been killed, forcing the army to redeploy - the biggest challenge to President Bashar al-Assad in years.

Syria’s rebels seized most of Aleppo on Saturday as their sweeping advance ousted Russian forces from at least three military bases around the city.

Opposition fighters have seized control of most of Syria's second-largest city Aleppo after launching a surprise offensive against government forces, a war monitor reported on Saturday, as an airstrike reportedly killed 16 people and wounded 20.