In a written statement, the embattled president—whose whereabouts are still unknown—said that the fate of the nation rests on the battle against the rebels. The Syrian government is apparently using fighter jets to shoot down rebels in Aleppo, one day after the opposition fighters took hold of the country's largest city. A spokeswoman for the U.N. mission in Syria also confirmed that the rebels were using their own "heavy weapons, including tanks, helicopters, heavy machine guns, as well as artillery." Rebels reportedly yelled "God is great," as they took a victory drive through Aleppo Tuesday.
