Syrian army jets have launched more than 150 air strikes on eastern Aleppo in the last 24 hours, killing at least 90 people in the northern city and its countryside, according to residents.
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The announcement was made as the U.S. secretary of state, John Kerry, met his Russian opposite number, Sergey Lavrov, and other foreign ministers on the margins of a United Nations summit in NY, with the ostensible hope of restoring a week-long truce that collapsed on Monday.
BEIRUT-Violence surged in Syria on Thursday as Syria’s government made it clear it has no intention of abiding by USA calls for the restoration of the failed U.S.
The United States and Russian Federation have failed to agree on how to revive the collapsed ceasefire in Syria after a meeting of the International Syria Support Group in NY.
Kodmani added: “I think if we say it’s a moment of truth, it’s a moment of truth for the worldwide community, the United States, its allies, the U.N. And it’s a tragic moment for the population of Aleppo”.
But he had a less rosy view of events on the ground.
“What is happening is Aleppo is under attack and everyone is going back to the conflict”, United Nations envoy Staffan de Mistura said.
“The next few hours – days at maximum – are crucial for making it or breaking it”.
Syrian government and Russian warplanes are targeting rebel strongholds in east Aleppo in the second day of intense bombing after the army announced a new campaign, rescue workers and activists on the ground have said.
Meanwhile the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said that more than 6,000 people, in large part ISIS militants, have been killed in two years of airstrikes by the US-led worldwide coalition in Syria. Ambulances and the lone fire engine that serves the rebel-held districts were damaged.
The ancient city, which has become both a symbol of resistance and the high price that civilians are paying in the war, has been carved into rebel- and government-controlled areas since 2012.
The conflict in Syria has cost more than 300,000 lives since 2011, during which time more than half the population have been uprooted from their homes.
In an interview with the Associated Press news agency, he reaffirmed his government’s position that a deadly strike on an aid convoy in Aleppo on Monday had not been carried out by Syrian or Russian planes. Already suffering from a shortage of fuel, their vehicles have been hard pressed to meet the increased demand on their services.
The U.S. supports some rebel groups fighting the government of President Bashar al-Assad, while Russian Federation is a close ally of the regime.
Washington in turn accused Russian jets of carrying out a deadly strike on a United Nations aid convoy on Monday, and Kerry and Lavrov exchanged angry words at the Security Council. Instead, he blamed the U.S. for the collapse of a cease-fire many had hoped would bring relief to the war-ravaged country.
A truce deal hammered out between Russian Federation and the USA briefly halted the violence earlier this month, but it collapsed after just a week without any of the promised deliveries of desperately needed relief supplies.
“Forty trucks are sitting at the Turkish-Syrian border”. Other locals said the latest raids were destroying underground shelters people had built.
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“We have begun reconnaissance, aerial and artillery bombardment”, a military source, speaking on condition of anonymity, told AFP news agency.
