RAGING VIOLENCE 

Aleppo's Neighborhoods Struck by Syrian Forces

As government and rebel fighters continue to clash.

Rebels and Syrian government forces have taken their battle over Aleppo into its sixth day, and several neighborhoods in the country's largest city are being thrashed by shelling. The bombing is coming from Syrian troops and, while many fighters suggested that the shelling would soon be replaced by reinforcement troops on the ground, they've yet to arrive. Instead, according to one rebel spokesperson, a "large number of troops," have been moved to Aleppo from another province. 26 people--including many children--have become casualties of the fighting, according to the British Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. The UN's peacekeeping chief has threatened to withdraw its team of observers currently stationed in Syria as soon as the 30-day extension on their mission expires, if the country does not significantly decrease its violence.