The Latest developments on the war in Syria, the refugee crisis and security talks in Munich, Germany.
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“We have not witnessed such bombardment since the revolution began”, said Abdul-Jabbar Abu Thabet, commander of a moderate faction fighting both Syrian government forces and IS.
The U.S. has countered with demands for the fighting to stop immediately, the officials said.
Under questioning from House members frustrated over the sputtering anti-ISIS campaign, McGurk said the United States and its allies were making progress against the group, but face major challenges.
One UN diplomatic source said Russian Federation was “stringing Kerry along” in order to provide diplomatic cover for Moscow’s real goal – to help President Bashar al-Assad win on the battlefield instead of compromising at the negotiating table. He accused the worldwide community of double standards in asking Turkey to admit refugees while most other countries in the world refuse to do so.
“No agreement on this [ceasefire] has been reached yet”.
“We’re going to have a serious conversation about all aspects about what’s happening in Syria”, he said.
BEIRUT – U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry says diplomats meeting in Munich have agreed to work with Syrian parties to implement a “nationwide cessation of hostilities”. “That is what we will talk about in Munich”.
The YPG is part of the Syrian Democratic Forces, a U.S.-supported rebel coalition that includes Arab and Assyrian groups. Gen. Igor Konashenkov said Thursday that Russian jets hit targets no closer than 20 kilometers away from Aleppo.
Further evidence of Russia’s influence on the fighting emerged on Thursday, when Kurdish fighters, backed by Russian air strikes, overran a military air base that had been in the hands of the rebels since 2013. Russia’s intervention has tipped the war Assad’s way, reversing gains rebels made past year. The closed-door consultations are scheduled for 11:30 a.m. ET (1630 GMT) on Wednesday and were jointly requested by New Zealand and Spain, backed by other Western powers.
In doing so, he will ask the others to find ways to increase or broaden their contributions – either militarily or in other ways such as financial contributions.
“We are increasingly seeing what we call multiple-trauma injuries because of the bombs and the heavy weapons they are using”.
Turkey is already hosting 2.7 million Syrian refugees and has refused to let a new wave into the country, leaving many sleeping in tents or the open.
Tens of thousands of Syrians were still stranded Wednesday at the Oncupinar border crossing to Turkey, which remained closed.
As losses mount in Aleppo Province, in the face of a Syrian military offensive, they were expecting the U.S. to bail them out, and now that they’re not, they complain of being “abandoned”. The rebels say they will not return to talks in Geneva unless government sieges and air strikes end.
Committee chairman Ed Royce said that the administration’s lack of censure on Russian Federation for the Aleppo campaign has resulted in “predictable failure”.
Turkey, whose role in the coalition is crucial as a frontline state with a 500-mile border with Syria, is also engaged in an increasingly acrimonious spat with the United States over USA support for Syrian Kurds.
Defense Ministry spokesman Maj.
Russia’s envoy said Moscow was ready to look at proposals for a humanitarian pause but that discussion would be needed to avoid the same outcome as in Yemen, where ceasefires never materialized.
The gathering occurred amid deep differences between the USA and Russian Federation over the timing and conditions of the truce – and a bitter argument over who is to blame for bombing civilian areas around Aleppo, a rebel stronghold.
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Brett McGurk, Obama’s point-man for defeating the Islamic State, said Russia’s Aleppo offensive was having the perverse effect of helping the extremists by drawing local fighters away from the battle against the Islamic State and to the war against Syria’s government.
