Thirteen people died when a residential building collapsed in Aleppo, northern Syria, on Sunday as rescue workers are still searching for people believed still buried under the rubble, state media said.
The five-storey building, in the Sheikh Maksoud district of Syria’s second-largest city, collapsed due to water leakages that weakened its foundation, government officials said.
It is one of many buildings to collapse in recent years in Aleppo.
They bore the brunt of intensive Russian and Syrian aerial bombing of areas under rebel control until rebels were driven out, six years ago.
Many displaced Syrians have been moved during the more than decade-long conflict to damaged buildings.
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This is because there has been no systematic reconstruction of residential areas and state services remain minimal, residents say.
The opposition has accused President Bashar al-Assad of withholding services from districts where the rebellion against him flared, in order to punish residents.
Work to renovate war-damaged buildings is in many cases done and paid for by local people, residents say.
The government blames the slow recovery and hardship on the war and Western sanctions.
It denied treating recaptured areas differently from ones that remained under its control throughout the war.
The government also said it is working to restore normal services to all areas. (Reuters)
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