REBUILDING HISTORY: A general view shows renovation work at the historic Grand Umayyad mosque in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo on Tuesday, almost two years after government forces recaptured the city from rebel fighters. An archaeological treasure in Aleppo’s Unesco-listed Old City, the mosque was the centre of fighting between rebels and government forces for months and suffered extensive damage. The Umayyad mosque was originally built in the 8th century but was apparently destroyed and then rebuilt in the 13th century. — AFP