Syria rebels pounded in Aleppo

ALEPPO (AFP) - Government forces shelled rebel-held areas of Syria's second city Aleppo on Saturday, monitors said, as the opposition warned the 18-month conflict had hit a point of "extreme gravity."

Loud explosions from shelling were heard across the northern city, an AFP correspondent reported.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which collates information from a network of activists on the ground, said artillery gunners targeted the districts of Katergi, Shaar, Sakhur, Hanano, Arkub and Marjeh.

Across Aleppo province, Al-Bab and several other towns were rocked by shelling and clashes between government troops and rebel fighters, it said.