Among the destroyed buildings of&nbsp;Syria's&nbsp;Aleppo, a battered sign between two army checkpoints welcomes visitors to an area earmarked to become a beacon of&nbsp;post-war reconstruction.

"The industrial city of&nbsp;Aleppo&nbsp;thanks you for your visit," it reads.

Once the country's powerhouse,&nbsp;Aleppo&nbsp;was devastated by&nbsp;Syria's ongoing civil war before Russia-backed government forces expelled the last rebels in late 2016 after a devastating siege.

As some of the city is slowly rebuilt, the Russian army this week showed reporters around, as Moscow seeks to highlight its role in the reconstruction&nbsp;of the war-torn country.

Several factories have reopened in the almost three years since the fighting ended in&nbsp;Aleppo, large parts of which were flattened.

At Katerji Engineering and Mechanical Industries, 1,000 people are employed in metalworking jobs.

About a fifth of the workers recently returned to&nbsp;Aleppo.

"We started work again a year ago and today we have four operational warehouses," said Salah Mitar, the engineer in charge.

"We hope to expand to 11 by 2020," he told AFP, as employees bustled around him in one huge warehouse.

But Mitar said international sanctions against President Bashar al-Assad's government and associated businessmen meant the factory cannot import sophisticated machinery.

The two main shareholders of Katerji Engineering and Mechanical Industries Hussam and Baraa Katerji are targeted by European Union and US sanctions respectively.

The factory was under rebel control until&nbsp;Aleppo's recapture and production ground to a halt during the fighting.&nbsp;

For the past eight months since the factory re-opened, employee Khaled said he had received a good salary.

But "very high prices in town" still make life difficult for him and his family, said the 38-year-old father of five.

After fuel shortages the government blames on sanctions, the value of the Syrian pound fell to its lowest level ever on the black market earlier this month.

Customers will return

Aleppo's UNESCO-listed historic centre and its centuries-old covered markets are also returning to life.

The frontline once ran through the old souqs, but today large parts of the historical trading centre have been restored.

Workers still shovel rubble in some alleys, like coffee shops and stalls most still empty prepare to receive merchandise.

Among them,&nbsp;59-year-old Abdel Rahman Mahmud could not wait to see shoppers back in his two-decade-old shop, where he will resume selling soap and spice.

"Customers will return. I'm sure of it. We just need to wait a bit," said the trader, who lost a son in the war.

The civil war has killed more than 370,000 people and displaced millions since starting in 2011 with the repression of anti-government protests.

But, Mahmud said, "our lives have changed a lot these past few years.

Things are a lot better&nbsp;we have electricity, water."

Russian pipes and cables

President Bashar al-Assad's government has won back large parts of the country from rebels and jihadists since Russia intervened militarily on its side in 2015.

After blistering military campaigns and Russia-brokered surrender deals, Damascus now controls more than 60 per cent of&nbsp;Syria&nbsp;and is looking to rebuild with Russian support.

Moscow says it has delivered thousands of tonnes of the water pipe and hundreds of kilometres (miles) of high-tension cable to improve water and power supplies.

Its military police on the ground have deterred looters, Russia says.

Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov, a longtime Kremlin protege with vast resources, has offered to fund the restoration of&nbsp;Aleppo's centuries-old Umayyad Mosque after it was damaged in the fighting.

But in the east of the city, residential neighbourhoods once under rebel control still largely lie in ruin.

Flattened apartment blocks lie on either side of deserted streets, dotted only by army checkpoints.

And just 10 kilometres (6 miles) away, fighting has continued.

The city lies east of the jihadist-run region of Idlib, where a Russia-announced ceasefire has largely held in recent weeks, despite sporadic bombardment.

The governor of&nbsp;Aleppo&nbsp;province, Hussein Diab, said fighting wounded 123 people in the province in September.

Among the destroyed buildings of Syria's Aleppo, a battered sign between two army checkpoints welcomes visitors to an area earmarked to become a beacon of post-war reconstruction.

Among the destroyed buildings of Syria's Aleppo, a battered sign between two army checkpoints welcomes visitors to an area earmarked to become a beacon of post-war reconstruction. "The industrial city of Aleppo thanks you for your visit," it reads. Once the country's powerhouse, Aleppo was devastated by Syria's ongoing civil war before Russia-backed government forces expelled the last rebels in late 2016 after a devastating siege. As some of the city is slowly rebuilt, the Russian army this week showed reporters around, as Moscow seeks to highlight its role in the reconstruction of the war-torn country. Several factories have reopened in the almost three years since the fighting ended in Aleppo, large parts of which were flattened. At Katerji Engineering and Mechanical Industries, 1,000 people are employed in metalworking jobs. About a fifth of the workers recently returned to Aleppo. "We started work again a year ago and today we have four operational warehouses," said Salah Mitar, the engineer in charge. "We hope to expand to 11 by 2020," he told AFP, as employees bustled around him in one huge warehouse. But Mitar said international sanctions against President Bashar al-Assad's government and associated businessmen meant the factory cannot import sophisticated machinery. The two main shareholders of Katerji Engineering and Mechanical Industries Hussam and Baraa Katerji are targeted by European Union and US sanctions respectively. The factory was under rebel control until Aleppo's recapture and production ground to a halt during the fighting. For the past eight months since the factory re-opened, employee Khaled said he had received a good salary. But "very high prices in town" still make life difficult for him and his family, said the 38-year-old father of five. After fuel shortages the government blames on sanctions, the value of the Syrian pound fell to its lowest level ever on the black market earlier this month. Customers will return Aleppo's UNESCO-listed historic centre and its centuries-old covered markets are also returning to life. The frontline once ran through the old souqs, but today large parts of the historical trading centre have been restored. Workers still shovel rubble in some alleys, like coffee shops and stalls most still empty prepare to receive merchandise. Among them, 59-year-old Abdel Rahman Mahmud could not wait to see shoppers back in his two-decade-old shop, where he will resume selling soap and spice. "Customers will return. I'm sure of it. We just need to wait a bit," said the trader, who lost a son in the war. The civil war has killed more than 370,000 people and displaced millions since starting in 2011 with the repression of anti-government protests. But, Mahmud said, "our lives have changed a lot these past few years. Things are a lot better we have electricity, water." Russian pipes and cables President Bashar al-Assad's government has won back large parts of the country from rebels and jihadists since Russia intervened militarily on its side in 2015. After blistering military campaigns and Russia-brokered surrender deals, Damascus now controls more than 60 per cent of Syria and is looking to rebuild with Russian support. Moscow says it has delivered thousands of tonnes of the water pipe and hundreds of kilometres (miles) of high-tension cable to improve water and power supplies. Its military police on the ground have deterred looters, Russia says. Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov, a longtime Kremlin protege with vast resources, has offered to fund the restoration of Aleppo's centuries-old Umayyad Mosque after it was damaged in the fighting. But in the east of the city, residential neighbourhoods once under rebel control still largely lie in ruin. Flattened apartment blocks lie on either side of deserted streets, dotted only by army checkpoints. And just 10 kilometres (6 miles) away, fighting has continued. The city lies east of the jihadist-run region of Idlib, where a Russia-announced ceasefire has largely held in recent weeks, despite sporadic bombardment. The governor of Aleppo province, Hussein Diab, said fighting wounded 123 people in the province in September.

In Syria's Aleppo, reconstruction makes slow start

Up to two million people in Syria&#39;s Aleppo have gone without running water for the past four days, the United Nations warned on Tuesday, describing the situation as &quot;catastrophic&quot;. 
 
The UN children&#39;s agency said that the fierce fighting that has rocked Aleppo in recent weeks had damaged the electricity networks needed to pump water supplies throughout the divided city. 
 
&quot;Children and families in Aleppo are facing a catastrophic situation,&quot; Hanaa Singer, UNICEF&#39;s representative in Syria, said in a statement. 
 
&quot;These cuts are coming amid a heatwave, putting children at a grave risk of waterborne diseases,&quot; she said, stressing that &quot;getting clean water running again cannot wait for the fighting to stop. Children&#39;s lives are in serious danger.&quot; 
 
Temperatures in Aleppo were pushing 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) on Tuesday, according to BBC Weather. 
 
UNICEF pointed out that attacks on July 31 had struck the electricity transmission station which powered water pumping to the eastern and western parts of the city. 
 
Authorities had urgently restored an alternative power line on August 4, only to see it damaged less than 24 hours later, with intense fighting hampering repair efforts. 
 
&quot;As a result, the whole city has been without running water for four days,&quot; the UNICEF statement said. 
 
The UN, which has called for an urgent &quot;humanitarian pause&quot; in the fighting in Aleppo to help trapped civilians, estimates that some two million people are in danger of coming under total siege. 
 
That number includes up to 275,000 people believed to be trapped in rebel-controlled east Aleppo, and well over one million who are in the government-controlled western part of the city, as well as those in the suburbs. 
 
Experts with the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights meanwhile put the embattled city&#39;s population at no more than 1.5 million. 
 
UNICEF said it and its partners were scaling up their emergency response to bring safe drinking water to civilians in Damascus. 
 
But it warned that civilians would soon be forced to resort to unsafe water sources if the pumping systems were not quickly repaired. 
 
&quot;We urge parties to the conflict to immediately allow safe access for technicians to conduct critical repairs to the electricity and water systems,&quot; Singer said. 
 
More than 290,000 people have been killed since Syria&#39;s conflict erupted in March 2011. 
 
(AFP) 
&nbsp;

The UNICEF said the fighting has damaged the electricity networks needed to pump water supplies through the city

Up to two million people in Syria's Aleppo have gone without running water for the past four days, the United Nations warned on Tuesday, describing the situation as "catastrophic". The UN children's agency said that the fierce fighting that has rocked Aleppo in recent weeks had damaged the electricity networks needed to pump water supplies throughout the divided city. "Children and families in Aleppo are facing a catastrophic situation," Hanaa Singer, UNICEF's representative in Syria, said in a statement. "These cuts are coming amid a heatwave, putting children at a grave risk of waterborne diseases," she said, stressing that "getting clean water running again cannot wait for the fighting to stop. Children's lives are in serious danger." Temperatures in Aleppo were pushing 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) on Tuesday, according to BBC Weather. UNICEF pointed out that attacks on July 31 had struck the electricity transmission station which powered water pumping to the eastern and western parts of the city. Authorities had urgently restored an alternative power line on August 4, only to see it damaged less than 24 hours later, with intense fighting hampering repair efforts. "As a result, the whole city has been without running water for four days," the UNICEF statement said. The UN, which has called for an urgent "humanitarian pause" in the fighting in Aleppo to help trapped civilians, estimates that some two million people are in danger of coming under total siege. That number includes up to 275,000 people believed to be trapped in rebel-controlled east Aleppo, and well over one million who are in the government-controlled western part of the city, as well as those in the suburbs. Experts with the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights meanwhile put the embattled city's population at no more than 1.5 million. UNICEF said it and its partners were scaling up their emergency response to bring safe drinking water to civilians in Damascus. But it warned that civilians would soon be forced to resort to unsafe water sources if the pumping systems were not quickly repaired. "We urge parties to the conflict to immediately allow safe access for technicians to conduct critical repairs to the electricity and water systems," Singer said. More than 290,000 people have been killed since Syria's conflict erupted in March 2011. (AFP)

Up to 2 million people have gone without running water for 4 days in Aleppo: UN

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In Syria's Aleppo, reconstruction makes slow start

Up to 2 million people have gone without running water for 4 days in Aleppo: UN