CEASEFIRE BRINGS RARE CALM
ISTANBUL • A ceasefire in Syria brokered by the United States and Russia appeared to be holding on Tuesday, residents and activists said, bringing a rare period of calm and raising hopes that food and other aid would eventually reach hundreds of thousands of besieged Syrians.
The nationwide truce, which went into effect at sundown Monday, is the second major attempt by world powers to halt — or at least curb — the fighting that has killed nearly half a million people, decimated cities and infrastructure, and spawned a humanitarian crisis stretching from the Middle East to Europe. Despite sporadic and minor violations of the truce, delivery of humanitarian aid is expected to go ahead.
The ceasefire is part of a broader deal between Washington and Moscow to eventually launch joint strikes on militants in Syria, and pave the way for a possible negotiated settlement to the fiveyear-old conflict that has had Russian and American forces on opposing sides.
But it remains an open question whether the deal can keep violence in check.
Rebel groups have criticized the agreement for not imposing direct penalties for violations, and claim it could give Assad’s military a chance to try to expand its grip.
Still, residents of rebelheld parts of Aleppo said their neighbourhoods were quiet Tuesday. It was a welcome respite after months of Russian and Syrian airstrikes.
Opposition areas in Aleppo have been “de facto under siege,” with 275,000 residents almost “entirely cut off from vital supplies” like food, water and electricity, the United Nations said.
But on Tuesday, Aleppo residents breathed a sigh of relief — even if just temporarily.
“People are going about their business, and children are even playing in the street,” said Mohamed Omar, a civil defence volunteer in the rebel-held part of the city. “A Russian warplane is above us right now, but it is not signalling that it will drop anything. We are praying that it won’t strike.”
The ceasefire agreement calls for the demilitarization of Castello Road, a critical route to bring humanitarian supplies to Aleppo.
Mohib Abdelsalam, a 26-year-old emergency responder and member of the Aleppo Revolutionaries rebel group, said residents had hoped that aid would arrive Tuesday.
“We are trying to remain hopeful,” Abdelsalam said. “We need petrol and food, fresh produce. We have been depending mostly on vegetables that we grow ourselves. We are currently just trying to survive the day.”
In Kafranbel in Idlib province, Abu Muhammad said residents there are relieved that there have been no airstrikes. “We haven’t heard any planes in the sky, and we haven’t documented any (ceasefire) violations in our area,” said Muhammad, an activist and lawyer.