Khatib being greeted by townspeople on the streets of Manbij |
Syrian National Coalition leader
Moaz al-Khatib today visited rebel-held areas in Aleppo Governorate to
strengthen ties between the main opposition and rebel fighters on the ground.
His visit came on the day rebels captured large parts of a Syrian
police academy near Aleppo city, after a fierce battle resulting in heavy loss
of life.
Almost 200 fighters had
been killed on both sides over eight days, according to the UK-based activist
group the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR).
In other developments:
-- The Syrian National
Coalition said in a statement “massive” assaults had been launched by regime
forces against the central city of Homs and the strategic Damascus suburb of Darayya,
which is held by the rebels.
-- Britain’s Foreign Secretary
William Hague dubbed Bashar al-Assad “delusional” after the Syrian president
told The Sunday Times in an interview it was "nonsense to suggest"
that the conflict was about his future as leader. Hague responded by telling
the BBC: "This will go down as one of the most delusional interviews that
any national leader has given in modern times.”