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ALEPPO, Syria, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- An elite pro-government forces advanced Sunday in a key rebel-held neighborhood in the country's northern city of Aleppo.
The Desert Falcon forces advanced on Sunday in some parts of the strategic Sheikh Saeed neighborhood southeast of Aleppo, where the rebels were amassing large numbers of fighters.
Firing mortar shells and using heavy machine guns, the Desert Falcons succeeded to take some parts of Sheikh Saed, after recently capturing the Burj al-Hamam and Talet al-Shurta in southeastern Aleppo.
"We, the Desert Falcons, were tasked with eliminating the terrorist groups in the Burj al-Hamam area and we were able to eliminate them and then we were sent to another mission in the Sheikh Saeed neighborhood, where our mission is to provide a fire cover for the infantry troops," one of the group's fighters told Xinhua at the outskirts of Sheikh Saeed on Sunday.
As the forces were firing mortars to cover the infantry troops, the rebels inside responded with many mortar shells slamming the area where the Falcon Forces were stationing.
Sniper shots also whizzed through the area, as the Xinhua reporters were covering parts of the battles there.
Another fighter, said the rebels have amassed a large number of fighters in Sheikh Saeed due to that area's significance as it's located near the ancient citadel of Aleppo and close to the safe areas under the government control.
The infantry forces of the Syrian army and Desert Falcons have moved into Sheikh Saeed from several directions under the fire cover of the Syrian air force and the heavy artillery.
The aim behind the military operation in Sheikh Saeed is to cut the rebel routs toward the eastern neighborhoods of Aleppo city, which have recently been taken by the army.
This comes as the Syrian government forces have become in control of 93 percent of the rebel-held areas in the northern city of Aleppo, as part of a two-week long crushing offensive against the rebels in eastern Aleppo.
The majority of the rebel-held areas in the eastern part of Aleppo have recently fallen to the army, which is fighting to wrest control over the few remaining neighborhoods.
Thousands of civilians fled to government-controlled areas while the rebels were retreating.
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad also said that the decision for taking all of Aleppo has been taken, adding that the army's recapture of rebel-held areas in Aleppo will change the course of the battles in Syria.
The Desert Falcons forces are considered among the elite fighters in support of the Syrian army, and it largely constitutes of military expertise, retired officers and members of the army, as well as volunteers from Syrian youth.
