Islamist rebels have been advancing through large swathes of the country's north-west in the past week, threatening the rule of Syria's long-time president, Bashar Al-Assad.

Syrian opposition forces have taken control of much of the country’s second-largest city Aleppo after a lightning advance that killed dozens of government soldiers in a major challenge to President Bashar al-Assad.

The capture of Aleppo by rebels, Syria’s second-largest city, has been a big change in the more than decade-long conflict, as the city had never before fallen out of government hands