Syrian insurgents said Thursday they have entered parts of the central city of Hama after three days of intense clashes with government forces on its outskirts, part of an ongoing offensive in which they seized Syria's largest city of Aleppo.
Syrian state media confirmed violent clashes between government forces and opposition gunmen on the eastern outskirts of Hama city but denied that the insurgents had breached it. Hama is one of the few cities that remained under full government control during Syria's conflict, which broke out in March 2011. Its capture would be a major setback for President Bashar Assad.
