Syrian warplanes attacked rebels near the northern city of Aleppo on Sunday, both sides said, as the government tried to push back the rebels’ advance in the area.
Dozens of air strikes hit near the town of Khan Touman, which rebels took from forces loyal to the government and its ally Iran late on Thursday, rebels and state media reported.
Aleppo – one of the biggest strategic prizes in a war now in its sixth year – has been divided into government and rebel-held zones through much of the conflict. The surrounding region is also crossed by valuable supply routes into neighboring Turkey.
The loss of the town south of Aleppo was a particular blow for Iranian troops who suffered one of their biggest single-day losses in the conflict.
Rebels are seeking to take over the area that would allow them to enter the heart of government-held parts of Aleppo.
In the western Aleppo countryside in the rebel-held town of Kafrnaha, an air strike hit a hospital with several killed, the Observatory said.
The Syrian war, which started with largely peaceful protests against the government, had descended into a sectarian war that has pulled in regional and global powers, killed at least 250,000 people and displaced half its pre-war 22 million population.

Source: Reuters, May 8, 2016