The 13-year civil war in Syria has roared back into prominence with a surprise rebel offensive on one of Syria’s largest cities and ancient business hub.

The Kremlin said on Friday it wanted the Syrian government to restore constitutional order in the Aleppo region as soon as possible after an insurgent offensive there that captured territory for the first time in years.

Scores of people were killed after forces opposed to the government of President Bashar al-Assad overtook a Syrian military base, a monitoring group reported.

Several armed Syrian opposition groups have taken control of almost all of Aleppo, the second largest city in Syria, according to a war monitoring group and reports from the city. Why it matters: The breach of Aleppo is a dramatic shift in the 13-year Syrian civil war and the rebels' largest offensive since 2020.

Syria state media say government troops are battling insurgents inside the country’s largest city Aleppo for the first time since 2016

A rebel commander said a fall in Iran-backed manpower created an opening this week's assault. Iran's ally Hezbollah has suffered big losses to Israel.

The Syrian army said on Saturday dozens of its soldiers had been killed in a major attack led by Islamist Hayat Tahrir al-Sham rebels who swept into the city of Aleppo, forcing the army to redeploy in the biggest challenge to President Bashar al-Assad in years.