The uneasy status quo around Syria’s biggest city, divided for years into the rebel-held eastern half and the regime-controlled west, collapsed in late July. That is when government forces, aided by Iran, Lebanon’s Hezbollah militia, and Russian... The escalating fight for Aleppo has emerged as a test of whether Russia and Iran can in fact help President Bashar al-Assad win a decisive battle in the five-year Syrian war—and whether al Qaeda’s local spinoff will become the dominant force among Sunni rebels seeking to oust him.

Source: Wall Street Journal August 11, 2016 09:32 UTC