Al Assad steps up air attacks on Aleppo
Syrian forces sustain assault on areas of city held by rebels despite Russia’s declaration of a ‘humanitarian pause’
ALEPPO // Syrian warplanes resumed raids on the last rebel- held districts in Aleppo yesterday after a brief supposed pause that never was.
Syria’s ally, Russia, declared a suspension of combat operations from Thursday to allow civilians to leave eastern Aleppo. But Syrian troops and allied forces continued shelling, making evacuations impossible and by late yesterday, a fullon assault resumed with Russia vowing it would continue until the city was cleared of opposition fighters.
“After a humanitarian pause, [the strikes] have resumed and will continue for as long as the bandits are still in Aleppo,” said Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov, speaking after yet another unproductive series of meetings with his American counterpart, secretary of state John Kerry. The UK- based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors the conflict via a network of on-the-ground sources, reported at least a dozen air strikes on rebel-held neighbourhoods yesterday afternoon, which came on top of artillery strikes throughout the previous night, during the supposed suspension of combat.
It is now three weeks since the Syrian army launched the battle to recapture all remaining opposition-held sectors of Aleppo, after encircling those areas in July.
At least 409 civilians, including 45 children have been killed in the government assault, while rebel fire on government-held areas killed 113 people, including 35 children. The forces of president Bashar Al Assad have taken about 85 per cent of territory held by opposition fighters. Rebel forces and civilians still in east Aleppo are confined to a shrinking space in increasingly grim conditions. With the bombardment now constant, food – which was already scarce – is now even more difficult to come by as shopkeepers dare not open their shops. There are reports from one neighbourhood of bodies lying in the street because it is too dangerous for anyone to go out and retrieve them.
All diplomatic efforts to reach a ceasefire have foundered despite repeated discussions between Washington and Moscow, which back opposing sides in the conflict. Yesterday Mr Lavrov said he hoped a truce could be reached soon and said military experts and diplomats would meet today in Geneva to work out details of the rebels’ exit from Aleppo’s eastern neighbourhoods, along with civilians who are willing to leave the city. Mr Lavrov and Mr Kerry met three times in 24 hours in Hamburg, Germany, and when asked if there was any progress, Mr Kerry replied enigmatically: “We’re working on something.” The UN General Assembly voted 122 to 13 yesterday to demand an immediate cessation of hostilities in Syria, humanitarian aid access throughout the country and an end to all sieges, including in Aleppo, but it was swiftly dismissed by the British ambassador as “too little, too late.”
Thirty-six countries abstained from voting on the resolution.
The Syrian army declared a ceasefire in areas around Damascus and the north- west province of Idlib beginning last night, but did not say how long the pause would last.
There was no immediate comment from rebels on the truce.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights also reported ISIL militants advancing to within four kilometres of government positions in the countryside around Palmyra, killing 15 Syrian and allied fighters. ISIL’s Aamaq News Agency distributed video showing what it said were Syrian soldiers fleeing positions west of Palmyra.
ISIL took Palmyra, a Unesco World Heritage site, in May last year and destroyed temples and tombs dating back to ancient Roman times. Government forces with Russian backing recaptured the city in March. Since then, however, the government has concentrated on the fighting around Damascus and Aleppo.
Also in Palmyra, an air raid by the US-led coalition destroyed a fleet of 168 oil tankers being used by ISIL to ferry fuel in Syria.
The coalition said it was targeting the oil infrastructure used by ISIL and that Thursday’s air raid on Palmyra resulted in estimated lost revenue of more than US$ 2 million (Dh7.3m). “Stopping or hampering cash flow degrades ISIL’s ability to fund the war effort in Iraq and Syria and terrorist attacks around the world,” the coalition said.
ISIL fighters launched simultaneous attacks on several government positions in the eastern desert of Homs province, including areas near the Mahr and Shaar oilfields and gasfields. They seized government checkpoints, silos and the village of Jazal, north-west of Palmyra.