Smoke rises from a rebel-held area of Aleppo, Syria December 9, 2016. REUTERS/Abdalrhman Ismail
BEIRUT: The Syrian army said it has sent reinforcements to Palmyra, where Islamic State fighters have advanced to its outskirts in some of the heaviest fighting since the group lost the historic city earlier this year.
The group had taken over areas to the northwest and southeast of Palmyra, and clashes continued on Saturday, the army said in a statement on Saturday.
A rebel commander from the Jaish al-Mujahideen group based in the Aleppo countryside said the IS attack was forcing the Syrian government to divert troops from Aleppo, where the army and its allies are on the verge of a major victory against rebels.
