Syria clashes kill 21 rebels in Aleppo province

BEIRUT, May 5 (AP): Fierce fighting around Syria's contested northern province of:leppo killed at least 21 rebels on Monday as rockets slammed into a government-held district in the provincial capital, killing nine people.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that along with the 21 rebels, at least 30 soldiers were killed or wounded in Monday's clashes in the province.

President Bashar Assad's forces, backed by Lebanese Hezbollah militants and pro-government militias, have been trying to wrest as much territory in Aleppo from the opposition ahead of the June 3 presidential elections.