U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry sits with President Beji Caid Essebsi of Tunisia during a bilateral meeting Monday, Sept. 19, 2016, in NY.
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The Syrian military announced Monday it is no longer observing a cease-fire brokered by the US and Russian Federation to allow food and medicine into besieged areas.
British forces took part in a coalition air strike which the Syrian government claimed killed dozens of its troops, threatening the country’s fragile ceasefire, the Ministry of Defence has said.
One of the officials said the attack “had dealt a serious blow to our efforts” and “it is up to the Russians to demonstrate seriousness of objective”.
The latest developments placed added importance on a meeting Tuesday of the International Syria Support Group, or ISSG.
Syria’s military on Monday declared that the seven-day, US-Russian brokered ceasefire was over as the government and opposition traded accusations over mounting violations.
“Well, the Syrians didn’t make the deal”, Kerry told reporters in NY.
Russian Federation and the United States agreed a deal during talks in Geneva earlier this month to pressure both Moscow’s ally Assad and US-backed rebels to obey a ceasefire. So let’s wait and see, collect the facts. “But we don’t have all the facts at this point”.
It accused “terrorist groups”, a term the government uses for all insurgents, of exploiting the calm to rearm while violating the ceasefire 300 times, and vowed to “continue fulfilling its national duties in fighting terrorism in order to bring back security and stability”.
That appeared to contradict a statement by United Nations humanitarian aid spokesman Jens Laerke, who told reporters in Geneva earlier on Tuesday, that Russian Federation had been notified about the convoy in advance. Both sides had repeatedly blamed each other for breaching the truce.
But most aid shipments envisioned under the truce have yet to go in, especially a convoy destined for rebel-held eastern parts of Aleppo, where some 275,000 civilians are believed trapped without access to food or medical supplies.
The Russian military said rebels launched a major attack on a government position on Aleppo’s southwestern outskirts, forcing Syrian troops to respond.
“We are prepared to extend the cessation of hostilities, while working to strengthen it and expand deliveries of assistance”, Kirby’s statement said.
Russian Federation – president Bashar Assad’s main foreign backer – said it had been told by the Syrian government that 62 of its troops had been killed in the strike.
The cease-fire came into effect on September 12.
However, he also repeated calls for the sustained delivery of humanitarian aid to Aleppo and other besieged communities. “Indeed, deliveries only began today and only then in limited areas”.
Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir pledged his country’s support for Syria’s opposition forces, along with representatives of Qatar, Turkey and European nations, and stressed that Assad can not remain in power, even though that issue has been delayed until the fighting wanes.
“We have not had seven days of calm and of delivery of humanitarian goods”, Kerry told reporters on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly.
Chief US diplomat Kerry will try to speak to Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in NY before Tuesday’s meeting of the International Syria Support Group but statements from Syrian and Russian military officials on the ground appeared to bury the deal.
Sirens wailed as ambulances zipped through the eastern rebel-held half of the divided city, the correspondent said, describing the bombardment as “non-stop”. “The cease-fire is in danger, is being seriously affected”, he said, but only the USA and Russian Federation could declare it over.
“And yet these aid workers were killed in their attempt to provide relief to the Syrian people”, he added.
The coalition’s weekend attack killed 62 Syrian soldiers. The opposition reported on Monday 254 violations by government forces and their allies.
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Syrian state media said there were 32 violations by rebels on Sunday alone.
