\n Syrian forces pushed forward in Aleppo Sunday as thousands fled rebel-held areas, but they lost ground to the south where the Islamic State group recaptured the ancient city of Palmyra.\n<\/p>\n
\n After a sudden regime withdrawal, IS jihadists made a lightning-fast advance across Palmyra, sparking new concerns for its remaining ancient treasures.\n<\/p>\n
\n Since mid-November, forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad have been focused on second city Aleppo, where they have retaken more than 85 percent of the one-time rebel bastion in the city's east.\n<\/p>\n
\n On Sunday, they pounded the shrinking rebel enclave in southeast Aleppo with artillery and air strikes, seizing the Maadi district and several other neighbourhoods, a monitor said.\n<\/p>\n
\n The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said more than 10,000 people had fled remaining rebel-held districts since midnight, heading for government-run west Aleppo and newly retaken areas in the city's north and centre.\n<\/p>\n
\n An estimated 120,000 people have poured out of east Aleppo since late November, the monitor said.\n<\/p>\n
\n State news agency SANA said that on Sunday alone, at least 8,000 people had fled rebel districts through several government-run crossings.\n<\/p>\n
\n It said approximately half were transferred to temporary shelters, while the rest were staying with relatives in west Aleppo.\n<\/p>\n
\n An AFP correspondent in the west said air strikes on the east were less intense as night fell, but artillery fire could still be heard.\n<\/p>\n
\n - Army withdraws from Palmyra -\n<\/p>\n
\n US and Russian officials were expected to continue talks in Geneva Sunday on trying to reach a ceasefire in Aleppo, but intense diplomatic efforts over the past week have failed to stem the fighting.\n<\/p>\n
\n Backing from Moscow, which began an air war in support of Assad last year, has been crucial in the Syrian army's ability to make gains nationwide.\n<\/p>\n
\n Russian raids overnight bolstered Syrian soldiers fighting off an IS offensive on Palmyra, the renowned UNESCO World Heritage site in central Syria.\n<\/p>\n
\n But the jihadists launched a fresh attack Sunday, the Observatory said, recapturing all of Palmyra after government forces pulled out.\n<\/p>\n
\n \"Despite the ongoing air raids, IS retook all of Palmyra after the Syrian army withdrew south of the city,\" said Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman.\n<\/p>\n
\n He said IS was \"combing the city\" for any remaining Syrian soldiers.\n<\/p>\n
\n The IS-linked Amaq news agency said the group regained \"full control\" of the city after taking the citadel overlooking Palmyra from a strategic hilltop.\n<\/p>\n
\n Capturing Palmyra from IS in May was a major symbolic victory for Assad's forces -- and for its Russian ally.\n<\/p>\n
\n Moscow has come under severe criticism in the West for its continued political and military support for Damascus as the regime pursues its assault in Aleppo.\n<\/p>\n
\n Russia says it is consulting with the United States on the terms of an Aleppo ceasefire after a full rebel withdrawal, without any sign of an agreement so far.\n<\/p>\n
\n - 'Yes to peace' -\n<\/p>\n
\n Pope Francis called Sunday for an end to violence in Aleppo and across Syria.\n<\/p>\n
\n \"I appeal to all to choose civilisation: no to destruction, yes to peace, yes to the people of Aleppo and Syria,\" he said.\n<\/p>\n
\n At least 413 civilians have been killed in east Aleppo since the offensive began on November 15, the Observatory said, and 139 killed in rebel rocket fire on the city's west.\n<\/p>\n
\n The UN children's agency said all children in Aleppo were suffering from trauma.\n<\/p>\n
\n \"I have never seen in my life such a dramatic situation (as) what is happening to children in Aleppo,\" said Radoslaw Rzehak, UNICEF's field office head inside the devastated city.\n<\/p>\n
\n Assad's forces retaking Aleppo appears to be only a matter of time.\n<\/p>\n
\n The loss of east Aleppo will deal the biggest blow to Syria's opposition since the civil war began in 2011.\n<\/p>\n
\n \"We're now past the point where the opposition has any hope of pulling things back,\" said Yezid Sayigh of the Carnegie Middle East Center in Beirut.\n<\/p>\n
\n Assad \"will have in effect broken the back of the armed opposition... and the idea that the regime can be overcome militarily will be finally put to rest\".\n<\/p>\n
\n After meetings in Paris on Saturday, Western and Arab powers called for talks to end the war.\n<\/p>\n
\n US Secretary of State John Kerry, who called the regime's bombings of Aleppo \"war crimes\", said the time was ripe for a return to negotiations.\n<\/p>\n
\n Rebels \"can still win a political settlement that honours the fight and all they've invested,\" Kerry said.\n<\/p>\n
\n In a rare public appearance on Sunday, Assad attended a celebration at a Damascus mosque to mark the Prophet Mohammed's birthday, SANA reported.\n<\/p>\n
\n burs\/mjg\/ah\/srm<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Syrian forces pushed forward in Aleppo Sunday as thousands fled rebel-held areas, but they lost ground to the south where the Islamic State group recaptured the ancient city of Palmyra. After a sudden regime withdrawal, IS jihadists made a lightning-fast advance across Palmyra, sparking new concerns for its remaining ancient treasures. Since mid-November, forces loyal […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":60,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[553],"tags":[],"ji_location":[],"class_list":["post-31043","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-live-feed"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n