Could this be the last battle for Aleppo?
Opposition factions in southern Aleppo have made significant advances after launching attacks in response to the one-month-long siege imposed by the regime on Aleppo’s eastern neighborhood.
![MIDEAST-CRISIS/SYRIA-ALEPPO A Free Syrian Army tank fires in Ramousah area, southwest of Aleppo, Syria August 2, 2016. Picture taken August 2, 2016. REUTERS/Abdalrhman Ismail - RTSKU1N](/sites/default/files/styles/article_hero_medium/public/almpics/2016/08/RTSKU1N.jpg/RTSKU1N.jpg?h=f7822858&itok=gm-TL17Z)
ALEPPO, Syria — On July 31, Syrian opposition factions launched a fierce attack on Aleppo in northern Syria. In a first of its kind, the attack involved all of the opposition factions and groups.
Inside opposition-controlled neighborhoods, which have been besieged for almost a month by the Syrian regime, the scene changed completely when the battles erupted July 31. The residents’ moods shifted from confusion and anxiety to a state of optimism that their suffering under the siege was coming to an end. In the meantime, clouds of black smoke billow in the sky as a result of the residents’ burning of tires to prevent regime warplanes from identifying targets.