Syrian army takes ground north of Aleppo, blocks road - monitor
The Syrian army backed by allied militia has captured several villages north of Aleppo from insurgents and blocked a main supply route leading into the northern city amid heavy fighting, a group monitoring the war said on Tuesday.
Aleppo, Syria's second city, is at the heart of clashes between pro-government forces and a range of insurgents which include al Qaeda's Syria wing Nusra Front, Islamist brigades, foreign fighters in other groups and Western-backed rebels.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said pro-government forces had blocked a road leading north from the city towards the Turkish border and heavy clashes continued.
Pro-government newspaper al-Watan reported on Monday that government forces aimed to encircle the city this week in an offensive against insurgent groups.
