Syrian rebels have taken control of Hama after Bashar al-Assad’s regime announced it was withdrawing troops from the city. 

It is the second major city to fall to the anti-regime forces led by militant group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), who have already seized much of Aleppo in a significant challenge to the Assad’s regime.

After intense fighting, rebels entered the east of Hama on Thursday and moved in on the west.

The general command of the armed forces said it had “redeployed and repositioned” its soldiers to “preserve the lives of civilians in Hama and not to involve them in battles inside the city”.