In many ways, seven-year-old Bana al-Abed has become a symbol of the human toll of the Battle of Aleppo.
For more than two months her Twitter account, managed by her mother Fatemah, has helped to shed light on the day-to-day lives of those living in Syria’s largest city, which has been ravaged by the ongoing military confrontation between Syrian, rebel and Russian forces.
READ MORE: Syrian girl, 7, with viral Twitter account tours devastated Aleppo
However, the young girl’s future now remains unclear, after taking to Twitter Sunday to announce her home had been bombed and her family is now on the run.
“The army got in, this could be our last days sincerely talking,” Bana’s mother wrote on Twitter late Sunday.
“Last message – under heavy bombardments now, can’t be alive anymore. When we die, keep talking for 200,000 still inside. BYE.”
Bana then shared a picture of herself, covered in dust, saying that her home had been bombed.
In a message posted around 8 a.m. ET Monday, Bana’s mother confirmed the family is still alive but is on the run as heavy bombardments continue in Aleppo.
The Syrian army and its allies claimed to captured a swathe of eastern Aleppo from rebels Monday in accelerating attacks. Rebels denied the army had taken the strategically vital Sakhour area, but the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the government had taken Sakhour and rebels had lost control of more than a third of eastern Aleppo in recent days.
WATCH:Syrian state media is reporting that government forces have captured the eastern Aleppo neighborhood of Sakhour, putting much of the northern part of Aleppo’s besieged rebel-held areas under state control.
Thousands of residents were reported to have fled as a result of the latest bombardments.
READ MORE: Life in war-torn Aleppo documented through Twitter account of 7-year-old girl
Capturing eastern Aleppo would be the biggest victory for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad since the start of the uprising against him in 2011, giving him control of the whole city. It would also be seen as a victory for his allies, Russia and Iran, which have outmaneuvered the West and Assad’s regional enemies through direct military intervention.
WATCH ABOVE: Syrian girl tours Aleppo after intense air strikes
“The bombardment is still heavy. There’s big displacement from the eastern neighbourhoods. They are going towards the areas that are somewhat further (from the front lines),” Mohammad Sandeh, a member of the opposition city council of Aleppo said. “There’s fear that the regime will advance more.”
Bana’s Twitter account went viral in October. Since then, she and her mother have taken to the social network to share the horrors of living in Aleppo through pictures, videos and text updates describing the devastation surrounding them.
READ MORE: J.K. Rowling sends ‘Harry Potter’ ebooks to tweeting Syrian girl living in Aleppo
“I want to let the world know about our life here,” Fatemah told Global News in a direct message on Twitter in October.
“I want people to know that we are suffering here and [they] should stand up for us.”
It was just last week that Bana garnered international attention after Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling answered her plea that she wanted to read the wizarding series.
— With files from Reuters
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