Syrian regime forces advanced against rebels during intense street battles in the heart of Aleppo on Tuesday, after the United States abandoned talks with Russia aimed at reviving a ceasefire deal.

Washington said its decision did not mean it was "abandoning the pursuit of peace", as Moscow called for "political wisdom" while announcing the deployment of its S-300 missile system to the port of Tartus.

Egypt's Interior Ministry says police have killed a senior Muslim Brotherhood leader and another member of the outlawed Islamist group in a shootout in Cairo.

A ministry statement carried by the state MENA news agency early on Tuesday says 61-year-old Mohammed Kamal, a physician by profession, was wanted for more than a dozen armed attacks and was twice sentenced in absentia to life in prison for establishing an armed group and an explosion near a police station.

A French-Tunisian woman working for the Red Cross has been released after nearly a year in captivity in Yemen, the International Committee of the Red Cross said late Monday.

An ICRC statement said that Nourane Houas had arrived in Oman's capital, Muscat, after being freed by her Yemeni captors.

A suicide bomber killed at least 14 people on Monday in an attack targeting a wedding party in the northeastern province of Hasakeh, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault attacked on Monday the "cynicism" of Syrian President Bashar Assad's regime and its Russian ally, while urging support for a new ceasefire.

Russia's foreign ministry on Monday said it regretted a decision by the United States to suspend talks on a Syria ceasefire, saying Washington was trying to shift responsibility for the failure onto Moscow.

A Moscow court on Monday fined a prominent blogger for inciting hatred after he called on President Vladimir Putin to "wipe Syria off the map."

Six civilians were killed and eight wounded on Monday when two rockets allegedly fired by Huthi rebels hit a popular market in Taez, military and medical sources said. 

The United States on Monday suspended negotiations with Russia on efforts to revive a failed ceasefire in Syria and set up a joint military cell to target jihadists.

"This is not a decision that was taken lightly," State Department spokesman John Kirby said, accusing Russia and its Syrian ally of stepping up attacks on civilian areas.

The U.N. Security Council on Monday was considering a draft U.N. resolution imposing a ceasefire in Aleppo and putting an end to all military flights over Syria's war-battered city.

The French-drafted text obtained by AFP on Monday was circulated to the Security Council at the weekend and a vote could take place this week, diplomats said.