Syrian rebels advancing against government forces pushed close on Tuesday to the major city of Hama, rebels and a war monitor said, after their sudden capture of Aleppo last week rocked President Bashar al-Assad.

A sudden flare-up in the more than decade-old civil war in Syria has drawn international appeals for de-escalation. Read more at straitstimes.com.

President Bashar al-Assad is in his most precarious position in years as the Syrian opposition forces make major gains in a massive offensive