UPDATE - Opposition forces continue to advance, capture villages as clashes with Assad regime forces intensify in Syria

UPDATES WITH NUMBERS OF VILLAGES GOT UNDER CONTROL OF HTS

By Omer Koparan and Ahmet Karaahmet

IDLIB, Syria (AA) - Clashes between Bashar al-Assad's regime forces and the opposition group Hay'et Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) continued in Syria's Aleppo and Idlib provinces on Thursday, with HTS claiming control of 34 villages and continuing its advances, sources said.

Fighting erupted early Wednesday in northwest Aleppo’s western countryside and continued throughout the day.

By Wednesday evening, the HTS had claimed control of 42 villages and positions in western Aleppo, and two more villages were seized on Thursday morning.

The opposition forces advanced within five kilometers (3.1 miles) of Aleppo's city center, seizing control of a 250-square-kilometer (96.5-square-mile) area.

Earlier in the day, they allegedly targeted the Al-Nayrab military airport in Aleppo with drones, destroying a helicopter.

The Assad regime retaliated by firing ground-to-ground missiles into civilian areas.

- Dozens of regime soldiers captured

The HTS is said to have seized heavy weaponry and military vehicles from regime forces in newly captured areas.

The group also took dozens of regime soldiers in its custody, with Assad's forces reportedly suffering significant casualties.

Approximately 10,000 civilians fled the fighting to seek refuge in the countryside of Idlib, a city in northwest Syria.

The conflict is becoming more intense, with fighting moving closer to the city of Aleppo.

- HTS advances in eastern Idlib

On Thursday morning, new fronts emerged as clashes spread to the Saraqib area in eastern Idlib.

Opposition forces claimed to have taken control of five regime-held villages.

Syria has been embroiled in a vicious civil war since early 2011 when the Assad regime cracked down on pro-democracy protests with unexpected ferocity.