However, rebels said they had no plan to evacuate Aleppo, the last major urban area they control, and denounced the amnesty offer as a deception. "It's impossible for the rebel groups to leave Aleppo because this would be a trick by the regime," Zakaria Malahifji, a Turkey-based official for the Fastaqim group which is present in Aleppo, told Reuters. More than 250,000 people are believed to be trapped inside rebel-held eastern Aleppo, facing dire shortages of food and medicine. Speaking to Danish television, Assad said he would "continue the fight with the rebels till they leave Aleppo. The Observatory said 10 people were killed 52 wounded in government-held areas of Aleppo city by rebels on Thursday.

Source: Otago Daily Times October 06, 2016 19:52 UTC