Fragile Syria truce tested by violence, US-Russia tensions

Agence France-Presse

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Fragile Syria truce tested by violence, US-Russia tensions

AFP

The ceasefire has been marred by a lack of humanitarian aid deliveries, sporadic violence, and increasing friction between Moscow and Washington

ALEPPO, Syria – Air strikes and clashes tested a fragile ceasefire in Syria Friday, September 16, as civilians waited for aid and tensions mounted between the deal’s brokers Russia and the United States.

In New York, the UN Security Council cancelled an urgent meeting that had been called to discuss whether to endorse the truce, billed as the “last chance” to end the 5-year war that has killed 300,000 people.

The ceasefire has been marred by a lack of humanitarian aid deliveries, sporadic violence, including 3 civilians killed Friday, and increasing friction between Moscow and Washington.

US Secretary of State John Kerry called his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov and condemned “repeated and unacceptable delays of humanitarian aid,” spokesman John Kirby said.

Kerry told Lavrov that Washington “expects Russia to use its influence on the (President Bashar al-) Assad regime to allow UN humanitarian convoys to reach Aleppo and other areas in need.

“The secretary made clear that the United States will not establish the Joint Implementation Center with Russia unless and until the agreed terms for humanitarian access are met,” Kirby said.

If the truce, which began Monday, September 12, lasts 7 days and humanitarian access is granted, Russia and the US are to work together to target jihadists including the Islamic State group (IS, formerly known as ISIS or the Islamic State in Syria and Iraq) and former Al-Qaeda affiliate Fateh al-Sham Front.

Under the truce deal, Moscow must put pressure on Assad and Washington must work with Syrian rebels to silence their guns. (READ: Key points in US-Russia truce deal on Syria)

The Pentagon said late Friday an air strike by the US-led coalition had killed a man considered to be the ISIS “information minister” this month in Syria.

Precision air strike

Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook said Wail Adil Hasan Salman al-Fayad, also known as “Dr Wail”, was killed in a precision strike near ISIS’s de facto Syrian capital Raqa on September 7.

Cook described him as “one of ISIL’s most senior leaders” and a close associate of Abu Mohamed al-Adnani, the ISIS spokesman killed on August 30.

ISIL is another acronym for the ISIS group.

Earlier Friday, Russia said that only Moscow and the Syrian regime were fulfilling the truce deal.

“Although the ceasefire agreement is bilateral, only one side is truly implementing it,” defense ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said.

However, Russia said it was still ready to extend the truce set to expire late Friday by 72 hours.

Friday’s UN Security Council meeting was cancelled at the request of both the United States and Russia, diplomats said. The closed-door consultations had been called after Russia’s envoy to the UN said Moscow wanted a UN resolution to endorse the deal.

France and other council members have said they must first learn more details about the deal before considering whether to endorse it.

The Pentagon also said Friday that dozens of US Special Operations Forces have been deployed to Syria’s border with Turkey to fight ISIS, at Ankara’s request, in support of Turkey’s army and “vetted” Syrian rebels.

Two children were among 3 civilians killed in air strikes Friday on the rebel-held town of Khan Sheikhun in Idlib province, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

Khan Sheikhun, like most of the surrounding province, is controlled by an alliance of rebels, hardline Islamists and jihadists such as Fateh al-Sham.

Under the truce, fighting is to halt across the country except where jihadists are present.

But experts say the deal will be particularly difficult to implement in areas where Fateh al-Sham has formed strong alliances with local rebels.

‘Critical window’

Earlier in the day, a barrage of rocket fire and shelling could be heard coming from the rebel-held east Damascus district of Jobar, an Agence France-Presse correspondent said.

Both the Islamist faction Faylaq al-Sham and Fateh al-Sham are thought to be present there.

The Observatory said 3 Islamist fighters and 4 members of the regime forces were killed.

The UN has called the truce a “critical window of opportunity” to deliver aid to rebel-held eastern districts of Aleppo city, where around 250,000 civilians are under siege.

The UN had hoped that 40 trucks of food – enough to feed 80,000 people for one month – could be delivered there as soon as possible.

On Friday, the trucks at the border with Turkey had yet to receive a green light to start delivering aid.

Under the truce deal, the main route into divided Aleppo, the Castello Road, would be demilitarized and aid convoys would enter from Turkey.

A military source said Syria’s army “has carried out its pledge and handed over a number of points to the Russian monitoring teams”, but that rebel groups had not withdrawn from their positions.

“As humanitarians this is immensely frustrating. We’re here, we’re on the ground and we’re ready to move… The world is watching,” Swanson said.

Washington accused Damascus of blocking aid.

“The trucks that could bring them life-saving assistance are idling on the wrong side of the border,” President Barack Obama’s spokesman Josh Earnest said.

“And that’s the direct responsibility of the Assad regime and their benefactors in Moscow.” – Rappler.com

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