by Rim Haddad with Layal Abou Rahal in Beirut Agence France Presse ALEPPO, Syria (AFP) — The crucial battle for Aleppo entered its “final phase” Monday after Syrian rebels retreated into a small pocket of their former bastion in the face of new army advances. President Bashar al-Assad’s forces held more than 90 percent of the onetime opposition stronghold of east Aleppo, a monitor and military official said, and appeared on the verge of retaking […]