Assad allies rally after surprise fall of Aleppo

Syrian and Russian airstrikes have pummelled areas of northern Syria after Islamist insurgents seized control of Aleppo as Iran's top diplomat arrived in Damascus in a show of support for Bashar al-Assad's regime.

- Ruth Michaelson

Amid attempts by the regime to repel the strongest challenge to its authority in years, Syrian state media shared images of airstrikes across opposition-controlled areas, claiming they were targeting enemy command centres and positions.

One airstrike hit a site close to a hospital in central Aleppo, the country's second city and a former industrial powerhouse that was the scene of some of the fiercest fighting in Syria's civil war. Civil defence forces in Idlib, known as the White Helmets, said an airstrike on Idlib city had killed four people and injured 54 others.

In Damascus, the Iranian foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, told reporters the purpose of his visit was to convey the strength of Tehran's backing for Assad and his rule.

Araghchi is expected in the Turkish capital, Ankara, today, as Damascus's allies and opponents scramble to adapt to Assad's sudden losses in northern Syria. "We firmly support the Syrian army and government," he said, according to the official news agency IRNA.

Assad had remained conspicuously absent from public view for several days amid a sudden offensive led by Islamist militants from Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), who swept through towns and villages across north-western Syria in less than a week before taking control of Aleppo.

The Syrian leader re-emerged late on Saturday night to conduct calls to regional allies in Baghdad and Abu Dhabi, as forces loyal to Damascus appeared to mount a counterattack.