Hundreds join key battle for Aleppo

Syrian government and rebel forces have sent in hundreds of fighters and extra military equipment to join the crucial battle for the country's second city Aleppo, a monitoring group said on Monday.

Fighting is intensifying as both sides prepare for what Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said that there would be a decisive battle for the northern city.

"Both sides are amassing their fighters in preparation for the great battle of Aleppo," he said.