Wary of Russia, residents of Aleppo decide to stay

BEIRUT — Russia billed its brief, unilateral cease-fire as a good-will gesture, a chance for weary rebel fighters and civilians to escape besieged areas in the Syrian city of Aleppo.

But during the 11-hour window Thursday, there were few takers. People trapped in east Aleppo said they did not trust that Russia, which has been helping the Syrian government bomb them for months, would now keep them safe in designated “humanitarian corridors.”

“All the human corridors that the regime is promoting are all lies,” Bassem Ayoud, an antigovernment activist, said via an internet message. “What’s happening is an extermination of people.”

Whether to stay or go has long been a life-or-death choice for the residents of east Aleppo.

Many said in interviews they wanted to stay to hold on to their homes, or to continue to resist the government of President Bashar Assad. Others say they would consider leaving if they did not fear new dangers along the journey, at the destination, or both.

Yet staying means subjecting themselves to more of the airstrikes that have devastated the city — hitting hospitals, schools and apartment buildings, and killing hundreds in the last few weeks alone — since a brief cease-fire, negotiated by the United States and Russia, broke down in September.

On Thursday, pro-government and rebel forces accused each other of preventing people from leaving Aleppo. The Syrian state news media said “terrorists” had attacked one of the crossing points, or humanitarian corridors, designated by Russia. Rebels and civilian residents said clashes erupted there overnight after government forces tried to advance.

Officials from the U.N. said Thursday afternoon that Russia had pledged to provide additional 11-hour windows over at least three more days, and to allow participation by humanitarian agencies.