Rebel-held east Aleppo collapse

EghtesadOnline: Syria government supporters in the city's west celebrate as rebel lines collapse amid reports of summary executions; Aljazeera reported.

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14 December 2016

The Syrian army and its allied militias are pushing deeper into east Aleppo as rebel lines collapse and their last urban stronghold looks closer than ever to falling.

According to ILNA, he fighters withdrew from at least six more east Aleppo neighbourhoods on Monday in the face of goverment advances, including al-Salheen, al-Firdous and Bustan al-Qasr, once one of the most fortified districts under opposition control.

Residents told Al Jazeera that government forces summarily executed dozens of civilians over alleged connections to opposition fighters. The figure could not be independently verified by Al Jazeera.

"The battle of Aleppo has reached its end. It is just a matter of a small period of time, no more, no less ... it's a total collapse," said Rami Abdel Rahman, the UK-based monitoring network's director.

The pro-government TV network Alikbariyah Syria broadcast footage of celebrations in the streets of west Aleppo, as people handed out chocolates and congratulated each other on "the victory".

"The joy of the people and the army are one," said one driver, wearing military fatigues.

Earlier in the day, Lieutenant-General Zaid al-Saleh, head of the Aleppo security committee, announced in the recently recaptured neighbourhood of Sheikh Saeed that the government push to retake the entire city was in its final stages.

"The battle in east Aleppo should end quickly. They [opposition fighters] don't have much time. They either have to surrender or die," he said.

President Bashar al-Assad government's takeover of the entire city would mark its greatest victory since the war began in 2011.