Russian army concentrates forces near Aleppo ahead of all-out assault

Russia has continued to build up forces north of the city of Aleppo over the past few days. Western and Middle Eastern sources monitoring the war in Syria estimate that this step is in preparation for an all-out assault by Russian, Syrian, Iranian and Hizballah forces on rebels in the northwestern city. The Russian command in Syria is said to be determined to capture Aleppo, purge the city of rebels and restore control by Syrian President Bashar Assad.