Syrian civil war fighting kills 26

DAMASCUS, Syria, Aug. 5 (UPI) -- At least 26 people were killed Sunday in the Syrian civil war as fierce fighting rocked the largest city of Aleppo, opposition groups said.

The opposition Local Coordination Committees said among the deaths were three government executions near Damascus and six in the northwestern metropolis of Aleppo, CNN reported.

In Aleppo, the country's financial hub, Bashir al-Hajji, a spokesman for a Free Syrian Army brigade told CNN there was non-stop activity by government fighter jets and helicopter gunships.

His brigade also said two large masses of government troops were seen advancing on the city.

Elsewhere, a spokesman for Syrian President Bashar Assad said on state television dozens of "terrorists" were killed or injured by an explosion at an ammunition and bomb storage site in Homs, CNN said.

Friday in Aleppo, rebels overran a state television building but later fled when government forces pounded it with artillery, opposition groups said.

Since the rebellion against Assad's regime began in March 2011, at least 17,000 people have been killed, the United Nations estimates. Rebels claim the fatality number is closer to 20,000.

Assad has steadfastly refused U.N. and various international calls to step down and has shrugged off various international sanctions.