A similar account has emerged from the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which talks of reinforcements arriving from the main Damascus to Aleppo road to the south. The U.S. State Department said credible reports of tank columns moving on Aleppo, along with air strikes by helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft, represented a serious escalation of Assad's efforts to crush a rebellion that began 16 months ago.
– Heavy shelling was reported today in Aleppo and Damascus, as government forces and rebels both gear up for a major showdown, reports Reuters. The Syrian military is sending convoys of tanks, troop carriers, and other hardware to the vital central cities, leaving rebels in control of much of the countryside. Activists claimed that rebels controlled about half of Aleppo, and, outgunned by the military, they doubt rebels can hold the city, reported the New York Times. Other developments: Rebels are rushing to stockpile munitions in Aleppo, reports the BBC, and setting up checkpoints and snipers even as thousands of residents flee the city. One resident in a Palestinian refugee camp in southern Damascus reported heavy shelling in the south of the city, beginning around 7am and continuing for three hours. As government forces pull out of the Kurdish parts of Syria to prepare for the large offensive against the rebels in Aleppo and Damascus, Kurds are using the withdrawal to fly the Kurdish flag, asserting their independence, reports the Guardian.