More Than 100,000 Syrians Trapped in Aleppo: MSF

More than 100,000 people in the Azaz district north of Aleppo face a critical humanitarian situation, caught on an active front line between so-called Islamic State (ISIS) militants, Kurdish-controlled territories and the Turkish border, Doctors Without Borders (MSF) reports.

Heavy ground battles returned to the area last week, forcing more than 35,000 displaced civilians to flee their camps. Today, more than 100,000 people are gathered at the border with Turkey, which has remained closed for most of the past year.

“Yet again we see tens of thousands of people forced to flee but with almost nowhere safe to go – trapped in this bloody, brutal conflict,” said Muskilda Zancada, MSF’s head of mission in Syria.

“Our medical teams are working under unimaginably difficult conditions and given the severity of the crisis we have decided to focus on emergency lifesaving interventions. In the last week we have seen nearly 700 patients in the emergency room, including 24 war-wounded,” she said.

The surge in violence led to the closure of a number of medical facilities. MSF’s hospital in Azaz is still operating, but the 52-bed facility can only prioritize emergency cases.

A press release put out on Monday by the humanitarian group condemns the European Union’s questionable priorities of returning Syrian refugees to Turkey instead of working on guaranteeing safe passages to the thousands fleeing active battlegrounds.

“It is unacceptable that the current efforts of the E.U. are focused on how to return Syrian refugees to Turkey, instead of on how to assure safety and protection for those amassing at the Syrian-Turkish border,” said Pablo Marco, operations manager for MSF in the Middle East.

Opposition Declares Pause in Peace Talks

The High Negotiations Committee (HNC) – the leading opposition delegation in the Geneva peace talks – announced a pause in talks on Monday after increased government advances on rebel-held areas.

The HNC sent a letter to rebel groups stating that the continuous assaults by pro-government forces meant that the U.S.-Russia-brokered cease-fire was effectively over.

The group accused the Syrian military and its allied militia of repeatedly violating the cease-fire in attempts to recapture the northern city of Aleppo.

Various rebel groups announced a retaliation campaign against the government forces in rural Latakia on Monday, while the senior opposition negotiator Mohammad Alloush said there was “no way” the opposition could continue formal talks amid the escalating use of force and the declining humanitarian situation, Reuters reports.

“We want real negotiations, not farcical ones,” said Alloush. “When there are 70 airstrikes, and when there is mobilizing of troops, when Iran sends further armed men and Russia sends a large group of rockets and unmanned planes, all this tells us that there is no real will for a political solution that ensures the safety and stability in the country.”

Obama and Putin Agree to Increase Efforts on Syria

Russian president Vladimir Putin and U.S. president Barack Obama agreed over the phone on Monday to build closer coordination on Syria and increase their efforts to strengthen the fragile cease-fire, Reuters reports.

Putin reportedly stressed the need for the moderate opposition to distance itself and reject ISIS and the al-Qaida affilaited al-Nusra Front, both excluded from the cease-fire.

On the other hand, Obama expressed that progress on Syria needs to occur “in parallel” to progress on the political transition in the country.

Additionally, Putin stressed the importance of closing Syria’s border with Turkey, which according to him is “where fighters and arms supplies for the extremists make their way in.”

Recommended Reads

• The Daily Beast: On the Front Line Against ISIS: Who Fights, Who Doesn’t and Why
• Foreign Policy: Bad as the Islamic State Is, Assad Is Worse
• Middle East Eye: Snipers and Speed Cameras: The Perilous Road From Damascus to Aleppo
• CNN: Obama Adviser Explains Why Clinton’s Syria Plan Won’t Work -Al Arabiya: Syria and Yemen, the War of Negotiations
• The National: Is it Possible That Al-Nusra and ISIS Will Join Forces?

Top image: More than 11,000 people, many of them Syrian, have been stuck at the Greek border with Macedonia for more than a month, amid hopes that it will soon re-open. (Associated Press/Gregorio Borgia)