GOVERNMENT forces have captured the village of Bkayze and are advancing with Russian air assistance toward the Kweiras air base besieged by Islamic State (Isis), a military official reported yesterday.

Bkayze is about four miles from the air base in Aleppo province, which has been under siege since 2014.

Aleppo-based activist Maamoun al-Khatib said that Syrian troops had captured two other villages near the base over the past day.

Since Russian air strikes began on September 30, co-ordinated with the Syrian military, troops have been on the offensive on several fronts in an attempt to secure supply routes and regain control of strategic areas.

In contrast to Moscow’s role, Damascus complained at the weekend of a “blatant violation of international law” when warplanes of the US-led alliance violated Syrian airspace and attacked a power plant supplying Aleppo city, causing a blackout.