Al-Nusra Front Controls Syrian Opposition Groups Near Aleppo - Russian MoD

Syrian opposition near Aleppo is dominated by al-Nusra Front terrorist group, the commander of the Russian center for Syrian reconciliation said Monday.

HMEYMIM (Sputnik) — Twelve civilians have been killed and dozens injured in Syria’s Aleppo region since mid-March after militants not involved in the ceasefire launched artillery fire at the city, the commander of the Russian center for the Syrian reconciliation said Saturday.

"Over the past two weeks, we registered rising tensions around the city of Aleppo. During that period, 12 civilians died in shelling launched by militants and 21 received various injuries," Kuralenko told reporters at a press briefing.

"In districts south and west of Aleppo, al-Nusra Front has fully brought under control groups previously classified as opposition, which is something we have repeatedly informed the United States about," Lt. Gen. Sergei Kuralenko told reporters.

Artillery strikes were launched by fighters from the Ahrar ash-Sham militant group that was reportedly founded by militants close to al-Qaeda, as well as by al-Nusra Front, which is excluded from last month’s ceasefire deal, Lt. Gen. Sergei Kuralenko said.

Syrian opposition forces have carried out a number of ceasefire violations since Friday, the commander of the Russian center for Syrian reconciliation said Monday.

"Over the past 24 hours, a series of serious ceasefire violations took place. Several armed groups, which include those posing as 'moderate' opposition, have undertaken a number of attempts at conducting offensives against government forces."