Aid Deliveries Reach Four Besieged Towns in Syria

Four besieged towns in Syria received aid for the first time in six months, reported BBC News. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said 71 aid trucks reached the opposition-controlled towns of Madaya and Zabadani and the government-controlled towns of Fou’a and Kefraya on Sunday.

The four besieged towns are bound by an agreement that requires any aid to be delivered to all four towns simultaneously, not just to one of them.

Madaya and Zabadani, located near Damascus, have been under siege by government and allied forces from the Lebanese Hezbollah militia since June 2015.

Fou’a and Kefraya, two predominantly Shiite towns in the northwestern province of Idlib, have been under siege by armed opposition groups and jihadists since March 2015. Government air forces have occasionally airdropped humanitarian supplies over Fou’a and Kefraya, but the two towns continued to suffer severe food and medicine shortages.

The latest aid deliveries were coordinated between the ICRC, the Syrian Arab Red Crescent and the U.N. The four towns’ agreement was negotiated earlier this year, with the government allowing aid deliveries after reports of civilians dying of starvation in Madaya caused international outrage. Deliveries stopped in April this year.

Gulf States May Arm Rebels, U.S. Officials Say

U.S. officials warned that Gulf states may arm Syrian opposition fighters with shoulder-fired missiles after the recent cease-fire failure, Reuters reported.

The U.S. has worked on uniting Western and Arab allies to pursue talks with Moscow while withholding delivery of man-portable air defence systems (MANPADS) from armed rebels. However, increasing frustration with U.S. policy in Syria may lead Gulf states or Turkey to increase their support of the opposition with a view to defending themselves against the intense onslaught of Syrian and Russian warplanes, an unnamed U.S. official told Reuters.

U.S. State Department spokesperson Mark Toner said Washington is strongly against bringing more weapons to the conflict, though he was unable to give a more direct response when asked what Washington is intending to do to stem the violence, other than negotiating. Commenting on weapons provision from the Gulf, Toner said, “What you would have as a result is just an escalation in what is already horrific fighting … Things could go from bad to much worse.”

A U.S.- and Russian-brokered ceasefire fell apart on September 19 after a humanitarian aid convoy was allegedly targeted by airstrikes. The U.S. blamed Russia, who denied any involvement.

Continuous Russian and Syrian airstrikes on Aleppo have left hospitals barely able to cope with the enduring siege on opposition-held districts and the rising number of victims.

Cease-fire Is “Not Dead”, Says Syrian Foreign Minister

The recent cease-fire in Syria is “not dead,” Syrian foreign minister Walid al-Moallem said on Monday, the Associated Press reported.

Speaking in a broadcast interview from New York, Moallem said the cease-fire is still viable.

The U.S.- and Russian-brokered truce is largely believed to have fallen apart last week after an attack on a humanitarian aid convoy and following renewed government airstrikes on opposition-held areas, including Aleppo, Syria’s largest city.

Last week was one of the worst in the conflict, said United Nations envoy Staffan de Mistura, with opposition activists reporting that more than 200 civilians were killed in Aleppo in continuous Syrian and Russian airstrikes.

At a U.N. Security Council meeting the day before de Mistura’s comments, Moallem accused the U.S., Britain and France of supporting “terrorists”, but said discussions between Russia and the U.S. were ongoing. The Syrian military announced the cease-fire was over last week.

Recommended Reads:

• The New York Times: In Syrian War, Russia Has Yet to Fulfill Superpower Ambitions
• The Daily Beast: U.S. Was Warned of Attack on Aid Workers in Syria
• NPR: Young Syrian With a Dream Risks His Life to Film New Netflix Doc
• Wall Street Journal: Calls to Expand U.S. Sanctions on Syria’s Assad Grow Louder
• Foreign Policy: Obama, Syria and the Missed Opportunities of UNGA 2016