Air raids on Syria's Aleppo kill almost 2,000 in 2014: monitor

Barrel bombings and other Syrian government air raids on rebel districts of Aleppo and surrounding areas have killed 1,963 civilians since January, including 567 children, a monitoring group said today.
A total of 283 women were also among those confirmed killed in the air strikes, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights which relies on a network of medics and activists on the ground for its reports.
The Britain-based monitoring group said the victims it documented were killed between January 1 and last night in rebel-held areas of the northern city and the surrounding countryside.
Control of Aleppo, Syria's former commercial hub, has been divided since a rebel offensive in 2012.

Government aircraft launched a bombing campaign against rebel-held districts in the east in mid-December, frequently dropping shrapnel-packed barrel bombs.
The use of the munitions -- which are unguided and cannot be directed against military targets -- has been condemned by the international community and human rights groups.