France's defence minister said Tuesday jihadists from the Daesh group were making major gains in Syria, especially in the northern region of Aleppo.

In parliament, Jean-Yves Le Drian pointed to "the very significant progress of Daesh (IS) in Syria at this very moment... particularly in the Aleppo region, (the town of) Marea," as he defended France's decision to conduct surveillance flights over Syria with a view to carrying out air strikes.