World War III Update: Syrian Army claims strategic district of Aleppo, Russian plans to break ceasefire to seal victory for Assad

The Syrian Army claims it has control of the strategic 1070 Apartments district in Aleppo on Tuesday. It is the most significant gain by the Syrian government in the rebel-controlled city, says the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Russia wants to hasten the victory of the Syrian government by planning a new offensive in the coming hours, the Defense Ministry said on Tuesday. It is expected to be a larger-scale attack compared to previous air strikes because of the possible inclusion of the Russian warship Admiral Kuznetsov, Slate reports.

Besides the observatory, a Syrian military source and military media unit confirm the full control of 1070 Apartments by the army. However, Yasser Alyousef from the political office of a rebel group, the Nour al-Din al-Zinki, claim the rebels recovered the positions they lost on Monday, Reuters reports.

In September, the Syrian government and Russia launch air strikes on Aleppo where around 275,000 civilians live. By the end of October, the rebels counter-attacked to break the siege by targeting western districts of Aleppo held by the government.

Russia said it continues to observe ceasefire declared by Russian President Vladimir Putin on Oct 18. However, Russia is reportedly ready to resume the air strikes in Aleppo in the coming hours. The resumption of the air attacks using Russian missiles would come at a time that global attention has temporarily shifted to the US presidential election.