Airstrikes on Syria’s battleground city of Aleppo killed six civilians on Sunday just 24 hours before a truce brokered by Russian Federation and the United States was due to begin.
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The Free Syrian Army groups wrote to the United States on Sunday about the deal it agreed on with Russian Federation, saying that while they would “cooperate positively” with the ceasefire, they were concerned it would benefit the government.
The letter coming on the 15th anniversary of the September 11 terror attacks highlight the curious position that the Obama administration finds itself in Syria working alongside militants who are closely tied with the great granddaddy of the War on Terror – al-Qaeda – who perpetrated the most heinous attack ever committed on USA soil.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said 58 people were killed in raids on various neighborhoods of Idlib city, including a market, but it was not immediately clear who carried out the strikes.
But they came as a new ceasefire, agreed as part of a landmark deal brokered by Russian Federation and the U.S., was set to begin today, the first day of the Muslim holiday of Eid’l Adha, allowing much needed aid to reach the beleaguered civilian population. The forces said they would “cooperate positively” with the ceasefire, but were concerned it would benefit the Syrian government.
Lebanese Shi’ite militia Hezbollah, which has intervened militarily on behalf of Assad, also announced its support.
“Halting all of the regime’s military air activities in key areas – key areas that are defined – should put an end to barrel bombs and indiscriminate bombing of civilian neighborhoods”, Kerry said, adding that this would “change the nature of the conflict”, now more than 5½ years old.
But he cautioned that its success relies on creating “a comprehensive monitoring mechanism, in particular control of borders in order to stop the dispatch of fresh terrorists” to Syria. Syria’s main opposition group the High Negotiations Committee – which brings together political dissidents with armed rebel factions – had yet to formally respond.
Leading rebel figure Mohammad Alloush said on Sunday the agreement was “still being studied”. Iran welcomed the deal on Sunday.
Ahrar al-Sham, one of the largest Islamist groups among the rebels, which has fought alongside Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, criticized the deal in a videotaped speech celebrating Islam’s Eid al-Adha festival, which falls on Monday, without rejecting it outright. “A big part of the agreement serves the regime and doesn’t apply pressure on it and doesn’t serve the Syrian people”. Damascus resident Taher Ibrahim told AFP he did not expect the new deal to play out any differently than February’s tattered truce.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, left, and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov announce a ceasefire in Syria during a press conference in Geneva on Friday.
To get aid into Aleppo, a “demilitarised zone” would be established around the Castello Road into the city.
Turkey’s military said Sunday that its airstrikes killed 20 Islamic State fighters in northern Syria, as Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan pledged to continue operations in Syria against the militant group and Kurdish rebels he blames for launching attacks in Turkey, the Hurriet Daily News reported.
Pro-government Syrian newspaper Al-Watan said on Sunday the deal would pave the way for renewed peace talks in Geneva.
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Several attempts at peace negotiations have faltered since Syria’s war erupted, with talks earlier this year in Geneva fizzling after the opposition walked away in protest at the humanitarian situation.
