ALEPPO, Syria

Assad regime forces with Russian air cover on Friday targeted the opposition-held Handarat area, which represents the only viable route out of Syria’s northern Aleppo province, according to local sources.

Sources told Anadolu Agency that the regime had targeted the area with artillery and mortar fire, while Russian warplanes had struck at the strategic Castella Road.

Maamoun Khatib, head of the Shahba Press, an Aleppo-based news organization, told Anadolu agency that the primary Russian military objective in the region was to "establish control of the Castello-Handarat Road with a view to entirely isolating the city [of Aleppo]".

"The regime has been carrying out intense attacks on the area with Russian air support," he said.

"Assad regime troops and members of the Quds Force [a special unit of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards], along with Iraqi [Shia] militiamen, attacked the area Thursday, but opposition forces repelled the attack and forced them to retreat," Khatib added.

According to data compiled by local Syrian civil defense officials and Anadolu Agency correspondents, 200 civilians in Aleppo have been killed by airstrikes since April 21.