They blamed rebel groups for violating the agreement which came into effect last week, saying they used the truce to mobilise and arm themselves, while attacking government-held areas.
Advertisement
But while the agreement has led to a significant reduction in fighting over the past week, violence has been increasing in recent days, and a planned delivery of humanitarian aid to besieged rebel-held districts of eastern Aleppo – one of the first steps in the deal – has been repeatedly postponed.
The United States expressed its “regret” over the incident, which Russian Federation said killed scores of Syrian troops.
It also wants to deliver to other areas which are hard to reach, but said it had not received necessary permission from the Syrian government.
“This might put in danger this Joint Implementation Center that the U.S. and the Russians are supposed to set up in the next few days to coordinate just these kinds of strikes against ISIS and to prevent just what happened”, he said. Syrian state media said there were 32 violations by rebels on Sunday alone.
The Syrian army meanwhile had yet to announce any extension of the seven-day ceasefire it declared on September 12, which was due to expire at 11:59 p.m. (2059 GMT) on Sunday, according to the statement issued by the army command when the truce was announced.
Syria’s weeklong ceasefire, brokered by the United States and Russian Federation, was in any case in growing doubt amid claims of repeated violations by both sides. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said 29 children and teenagers were among those killed, as well as 17 women.
Syria called Saturday’s US-led strikes on the outskirts of the eastern city of Deir Az Zor a “dangerous and blatant aggression against the Syrian Arab Republic and its army”.
“The latest example of this is the flagrant American aggression on one of the Syrian army’s positions in Deir Ezzor to the benefit of Daesh” on Saturday, he added, using the Arabic acronym for IS.
Russia’s military said it was told by the Syrian army that at least 62 Syrian soldiers were killed in the air raid and more than 100 wounded. It said the air strikes were “on objective and planned in advance”, and killed dozens of Syrian soldiers. There have been remarks from the Syrian military in Damascus that the truce might be extended by 72 hours.
“I believe that practically it has failed and has ended”, Zakaria Malahifji, head of the political office of the Aleppo-based rebel group Fastaqim, told Reuters news agency.
Syria’s UN Ambassador Bashar Ja’afari said on Sunday the air strikes aimed to sink the U.S.
George Sabra, of the opposition High Negotiations Committee, told The Associated Press that the truce has been repeatedly violated and did not succeed in its main objective – opening roads for aid to enter besieged rebel-held areas.
British forces took part in a coalition air strike which the Syrian government claims killed dozens of its troops, the Ministry of Defence has confirmed.
Denmark says two of its F-16 fighter jets took part in the US -led air raid that killed dozens of Syrian soldiers over the weekend.
Advertisement
Erdogan said the Syrian opposition forces, backed by Turkish troops and tanks, are determined to advance toward al-Bab to clear the region of terror threats.
