Syrian army recaptures Aleppo’s three Christian areas

Syrian army  recaptures Aleppo’s three Christian areas

PanARMENIAN.Net - The Syrian army has recaptured Christian areas in the city of Aleppo after heavy fighting with rebels, leaving streets desolated and deserted apart from local youths on patrol, residents said on Thursday, Aug. 23.

"We have had the worst two days of our lives," Sonia, the wife of a wealthy businessman in the northern city which is also Syria's commercial capital, said.

"If our house weren't built like a fortress, we'd all be dead. The entrance is very badly damaged. We couldn't sleep all night," said the resident of Telal, which the army seized on Wednesday along with Jdeide and Sulamaniyeh. Aleppo residents reported heavy exchanges in the heart of the city during the army's offensive to recapture the three neighbourhoods seized by the rebels at the weekend.

Of the three Christian quarters in the historic Old City of Aleppo, Jdeide and Telal were once frequented by tourists for their restaurants and handicraft shops.

The rebel Free Syrian Army had also seized the nearby neighborhood of Sulamaniyeh, most of whose inhabitants are Armenian Christians and which is home to ancient monasteries and a Melkite Greek Catholic cathedral.

The bishop of the cathedral on Farhat Square, left pockmarked by the fighting, himself had to beat a hasty retreat before the rebels moved in because of his pro-regime comments, another resident said, according to AFP.

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