Aleppo was once Syria’s commercial capital.
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Russia’s defense minister says Moscow and Washington are edging closer to an agreement that would help defuse the situation in the besieged Syrian city Aleppo.
German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier on Monday said Germany is concerned about the security situation in Crimea, adding that Russian Federation and Ukraine “must refrain from anything that may lead to a further deterioration of the situation”.
‘Step by step, we are coming closer to a plan – I’m only talking about Aleppo right now – that will enable us to start fighting together to establish peace in this very troubled land so that people can return to their homes.’ Earlier on Monday, Steinmeier called on Russian Federation to lay down its weapons to allow humanitarian aid to reach the embattled city in northern Syria.
The Nusra Front has rebranded itself and now goes by the name of Fath al-Sham, an apparent attempt to evade Russian and US-led air strikes targeting militants.
The operation, in which US special forces played a significant role, marks the most ambitious advance by a group allied to Washington in Syria since the United States launched its military campaign against Islamic State two years ago. The Islamic State group has positions in Aleppo province; Idlib has the presence of the Nusra militant group. About 5,000 refugees from Islamic State controlled Raqqah and Dayr Az-Zawr provinces fled to the refugee camp in recent ten days. The city near the Turkish border has been split between a rebel-held eastern part and a government-held western part since 2012.
However, opposition activists and militant websites reported on Monday that the rebels and militants retreated from all positions they seized near the cement factory following a massive government counterattack.
Shoigu said in the TV interview that extremists in Syria are often positioned near groups that the USA considers moderate.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors the war through a network of activists on the ground, said at least 35 rebels were killed in the fighting. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the talks.
The Syrian government describes all armed groups fighting to topple President Assad as terrorist.
On Monday, the International Committee for the Red Cross called the battle for Aleppo “one of the most devastating urban conflicts in modern times”.
The aid group urged combatants to agree to regular humanitarian pauses to restore essential services and deliver relief.
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Spokesman Steffen Seibert also criticized Moscow’s offer of a daily three-hour cease-fire in Aleppo.
