Finally, a glimmer of hope from Syria

THERE may at last be good news out of Syria, which so many of my fellow journalists are too deluded to see. The defeat of the Islamist fanatics in eastern Aleppo now seems very close indeed. These nasty, ruthless people, encouraged, armed and aided by the intolerant despots of Saudi Arabia and helped madly by us, have deliberately turned Syria into a desert. They have terrible things on their consciences. If they are now beaten, the long task of rebuilding can at last begin and the refugees can start to return.

Yet intelligent people here continue to swallow the propaganda of the jihadis – the only source of ‘news’ from eastern Aleppo because no independent journalist dares put himself in the power of these so-called ‘rebels’. They never ask if the pictures from eastern Aleppo are posed or staged, or if the voices they hear are independent. They believe, without evidence or hesitation, any slander levelled at Russia, seeming to think that Russians are child-hating savages who deliberately seek to kill civilians, whereas we, when we bomb Islamists in cities such as Mosul or Fallujah (which we do), only kill civilians by accident.

Good heavens, have we already forgotten? Russians of all people know what it is like to have your land and homes attacked by ruthless, indiscriminate killers. Why do we assume they care less than us, and are less human than we are?