Syrian Rebels Claim Control of Aleppo  

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Syria rebels claimed to have seized the entire western area of Aleppo, a northern place that has overseen the harshest battles between the armies of President Bashar al-Assad and the opposition fighters for months.

"We managed to liberate the western entry point to Aleppo. We achieved this victory against the Assad forces and Iranian Revolutionary Guards, along with some forces from Hezbollah," rebels said in a video shared on the Internet on Tuesday, July 23, 2013.

"At this point, we can say that Khan al-Assal has been liberated entirely and is in our control, which means that Aleppo's countryside is in our control."

According to Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), a human rights organization based in England, Khan al-Assal was the last regime bastion in the western part of the Aleppo province, which lies on the Turkish border.

At the same chance, the rebels also claimed to take control over Obeida and Hajireh villages, that stretch southeast of Aleppo city on Monday, July 22, 2013.

The Syria army and opposition groups have been accusing each other over the use of chemical weapons that claimed the lives of at least 25 people in Khan al-Assal.

Meanwhile, 80 members of the Syrian opposition have been freed from Aleppo's central prison in a program called "Food for Freedom" that was brokered by the Syrian Red Crescent.

AL JAZEERA | CHOIRUL