Status of main battle fronts in Syria and Iraq

Here are the latest developments on the main battle fronts in Syria and Iraq, as of 1830 GMT on Wednesday:

SYRIA

- Battle for Aleppo -

Shelling and air strikes sent terrified residents running through the streets of Aleppo amid international efforts to save a deal to evacuate rebel-held districts of the city.

A month into an assault to regain control of all of the northern city, Syria's army has taken back more than 90 percent of the former rebel stronghold in east Aleppo.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported "very intense clashes on every front line" and said at least two people had been killed in rebel areas.

State television said rebel rocket fire on government-controlled areas had also resumed, killing at least seven people.

It was unclear how many civilians remained in rebel territory, after an estimated 130,000 fled to other parts of Aleppo during the government advance.

More than 465 civilians, including 62 children, have died in east Aleppo during the assault, the Observatory said Wednesday in a new toll.

Another 142 civilians, among them 42 children, have been killed by rebel rocket fire on government-held zones in the same period, the monitor said.

- Palmyra -

With regime forces focused on taking Aleppo, the Islamic State group has re-seized the ancient city of Palmyra in central Syria, just eights months after the army backed by Russia drove the jihadists out.

Retaking the UNESCO World Heritage site on Sunday gave the jihadist group an important propaganda boost as it faces assaults on two key bastions -- Syria's Raqa and Iraq's Mosul. 

- Raqa -

A US-backed Kurdish-Arab alliance is fighting to seize IS's de facto Syrian capital of Raqa, east of Aleppo.

Backed by US troops and air strikes from a US-led coalition, members of the Syrian Democratic Forces have advanced to within 25 kilometres (15 miles) of the city.

IRAQ

- Battle for Mosul -

Hashed al-Shaabi (Popular Mobilisation) paramilitary forces said on Tuesday they retook three more villages southwest of Mosul, completing another phase in operations aimed at cutting the jihadists' link to Syria.

Pro-government forces launched an assault on October 17 to eject IS from its last Iraqi stronghold. They have taken almost half of eastern Mosul.

The elite Counter-Terrorism Service now controls several eastern neighbourhoods and is closing in on the river Tigris that divides the city.

Federal police and interior ministry forces have mostly been fighting on a southern front, stalled within striking distance of Mosul airport.

The United Nations says a total of 90,000 people have been displaced as a result of the Mosul operation.

Source: AFP