‘Clown of Aleppo’ is killed in an air strike on the Syrian city

Anas al-Basha, the Syrian man that worked as a clown in an attempt to bring comfort to the children of war-torn Aleppo, has reportedly been killed by an air strike.

A quarter of a million people are currently living in the city, which is under siege as government forces attempt to regain full control of its rebel-held eastern district. 100,000 of those that remain there are said to be children. According to the Associated Press, Mr Basha, a 24-year-old who worked as a centre director for the civil society group, Space of Hope, died when an air strike hit the Mashhad neighbourhood on Tuesday. 'He lived to make children laugh and happy in the darkest most dangerous place,' Mahmoud al-Basha, who described himself as Anas' brother, wrote on Facebook. 'Anas who refused to leave Aleppo and decided to stay there to continue his work as a volunteer, to help the civilians and give gifts for the children in the streets to bring hope for them." According to reports, Mr Basha married two months ago and his wife remains trapped in a rebel-held area of the city. His parents chose to leave Aleppo before the government began its siege in July, adds the Associated Press.