Fahad Khan 2
Banned
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دمشق ميں فوج کي سالگرہ کي تقريب سے خطاب کرتے ہوئے بشارالاسد نے فوجيوں سے کہا کہ وہ ملک کے تحفظ کے لئے اپني تياريوں اورعزم ميں اضافہ کريں کيونکہ ملک کو اس وقت ايک بڑے چيلنج کا سامنا ہے،ہميں باغيوں کے مقابلے ميں شام کے سب سے بڑے شہر اليپوکي جنگ جيتني ہوگي،کيونکہ يہ جنگ ہماري قسمت کے لئے فيصلہ کن ثابت ہوگي
[h=1]In Syria conflict, a decisive battle for Aleppo looms[/h]
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[h=1]In Syria conflict, a decisive battle for Aleppo looms[/h]
BEIRUT An impending battle for the northern city of Aleppo could prove to be a decisive moment for both sides in the Syrian conflict, threatening President Bashar Assad with a loss he may not survive or rebels with a rout that highlights their disorganization and lack of firepower.
Government troops and rebel forces were massing Friday around Syria's commercial capital and richest city. Until a rebel offensive swept in from the outskirts this week, the city had been relatively calm and firmly under government control.
Syrian state television played martial music and showed stock footage of fervent conscripts signing up for military service. Assad was shown in camouflage, peering through binoculars alongside military commanders. Although the footage was probably shot long ago, playing it now emphasized the importance of the moment. In a front-page headline, the pro-government Al Watan newspaper spoke of a "Mother of All Battles" for the city of 2 million people.
The United Nations human rights chief voiced "deep alarm" over the buildup of forces in Aleppo, saying it "bodes ill for the people of that city."
U.S. officials warned of a possible massacre reminiscent of the concern during last year's Libyan uprising for the rebel-held city of Benghazi. Western-led airstrikes destroyed Libyan leader Moammar Kadafi's mechanized columns, saving the city from being overrun.
But mindful of the complexity of the Syrian conflict, Western officials have said consistently that they do not intend to intervene in Syria. That leaves government forces, heavily armed but stretched thin, to battle poorly armed rebels who nevertheless appear to have seized the momentum.
Few doubt that the government will do everything it can to retain control of Aleppo, the country's economic hub and the gateway to northern Syria.
"Assad cannot afford to lose control of Aleppo," said Fawaz A. Gerges, director of the Middle East Center at the London School of Economics. "It is as important as Damascus, if not more so, to Assad's survival."
Government troops and rebel forces were massing Friday around Syria's commercial capital and richest city. Until a rebel offensive swept in from the outskirts this week, the city had been relatively calm and firmly under government control.
Syrian state television played martial music and showed stock footage of fervent conscripts signing up for military service. Assad was shown in camouflage, peering through binoculars alongside military commanders. Although the footage was probably shot long ago, playing it now emphasized the importance of the moment. In a front-page headline, the pro-government Al Watan newspaper spoke of a "Mother of All Battles" for the city of 2 million people.
The United Nations human rights chief voiced "deep alarm" over the buildup of forces in Aleppo, saying it "bodes ill for the people of that city."
U.S. officials warned of a possible massacre reminiscent of the concern during last year's Libyan uprising for the rebel-held city of Benghazi. Western-led airstrikes destroyed Libyan leader Moammar Kadafi's mechanized columns, saving the city from being overrun.
But mindful of the complexity of the Syrian conflict, Western officials have said consistently that they do not intend to intervene in Syria. That leaves government forces, heavily armed but stretched thin, to battle poorly armed rebels who nevertheless appear to have seized the momentum.
Few doubt that the government will do everything it can to retain control of Aleppo, the country's economic hub and the gateway to northern Syria.
"Assad cannot afford to lose control of Aleppo," said Fawaz A. Gerges, director of the Middle East Center at the London School of Economics. "It is as important as Damascus, if not more so, to Assad's survival."
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