Rebel fighters ride a tank in an artillery academy of Aleppo, Syria, August 6, 2016. (Xinhua/Reuters Photo)
DAMASCUS, Aug. 11 (Xinhua) -- Intense battles raged Thursday morning in Syria's northern province of Aleppo, just hours after government troops unleashed pre-emptive strikes on rebel positions in the province's southern countryside, a military source told Xinhua.
Fierce fighting continued Thursday between the Syrian army, backed by the Lebanese Hezbollah and Russian air cover, and the rebels' Jaish al-Fateh in all areas in the southern countryside of Aleppo, said the source on condition of anonymity.
Artillery and rocket shelling by the Syrian army on the positions of Jaish al-Fateh left the rebels in a state of "confusion," the source added.
The source added that many rebels were either killed or wounded by the shelling on al-Ramouseh, Musherfeh, and the Project 1070 areas in southwestern Aleppo.
Meanwhile, opposition activists said that a rebel commander was killed in the Project 1070 area during battles with government forces.
The Syrian army carried out a preemptive strike against a rebel position in the countryside of Aleppo on Wednesday evening, inflicting hefty losses among the opposition militants.
The military forces targeted gatherings of the rebels' Jaish al-Fateh group in the Project 1070 area, one of several areas that have recently fallen to Jaish al-Fateh, in the southern countryside of Aleppo.
The source noted that the rebels were preparing to unleash an all-out offensive in Aleppo.
Meanwhile, the state news agency SANA said the Syrian and Russian air forces dealt "decisive strikes" on the positions of Jaish al-Fateh in southern Aleppo on Wednesday.
Citing a military source, SANA said the airstrikes targeted the gatherings of the rebels, killing "large numbers of them and destroying armored vehicles outfitted with machine guns."
The strikes destroyed four command centers, three booby-trapped vehicles and dozens of armored vehicles, SANA added.
It said the Russian and Syrian air forces had killed hundreds of terrorists a day earlier in Aleppo, isolating the battle areas from the rest of the province.
Jaish al-Fateh announced last Monday that the next phase of battles in Aleppo will be a wide-scale offensive to "liberate the entire city" from government forces.
Since then, reports have emerged that the Syrian army and the rebels are sending reinforcement in anticipation of the all-out offensive.
Jaish al-Fateh, or the Army of Conquest, an alliance of several rebel factions, was reportedly formed in March 2015 under the supervision and coordination of Saudi cleric Abdullah al-Muhaysini.
The group seized most of Idlib province in northwestern Syria last year.
Aleppo is strategic for all warring parties due to its key location beside the Turkish border and role as Syria's industrial capital.
Observers say whoever controls Aleppo will gain the upper hand in any potential settlement in Syria.
