Ceasefire takes effect in Aleppo
A "humanitarian pause" yesterday began in the Syrian army's Russian-backed assault on rebel-held areas of Aleppo but clashes continued and there were no signs residents were heeding calls to leave.
The unilateral ceasefire took effect at 8:00 am 0500 GMT) and was to last at least 11 hours, with the aim of allowing civilians and fighters to evacuate the city's opposition-controlled east.
Gunfire and artillery exchanges erupted around a crossing point near the rebel-controlled Bustan al-Qasr district shortly after the pause began, an AFP correspondent said.
Russia yesterday extended the ceasefire by 24-hours.
The Syrian army has said it is opening eight corridors for civilians to leave, two of which can also be used by rebel fighters provided they leave behind their weapons.
Western powers have expressed scepticism. European Union leaders yesterday gathered for a summit in Brussels strongly condemn Syria and Russia over Aleppo and threatened to imposing sanctions if fighting continues.
The sanction threat came as Russia has begun its “largest surface deployment” since the end of the Cold War in what is thought to be preparation for a final assault on besieged rebels in the city.
Eight Russian warships and the country's only aircraft carrier left Murmansk on Wednesday, sailing past Norway and into the English Channel en route to the Mediterranean, a senior Nato diplomat said, citing Western intelligence reports.
“They are deploying all of the Northern fleet and much of the Baltic fleet in the largest surface deployment since the end of the Cold War,” the diplomat said on condition of anonymity.
“This is not a friendly port call. In two weeks, we will see a crescendo of air attacks on Aleppo as part of Russia's strategy to declare victory there,” the source added.
Meanwhile, Turkish warplanes carried out deadly strikes on US-backed militias in northern Syria, including Syrian Kurdish fighters, a monitor said yesterday, action that is likely to raise tensions between the Nato allies.
The army, quoted by the official news agency Anadolu, said the raids hit 18 targets north of the battered Syrian city of Aleppo, areas recently recaptured by the People's Protection Units (YPG) from the Islamic State group.
It said the raids killed between 160 and 200 YPG militants.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights in Beirut, however, put the toll much lower at at least 11 fighters from the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF)-- a US-backed alliance of Kurdish and Arab fighters -- killed and 24 wounded.
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