Syria's Aleppo in abyss amid growing gap in views to defuse tension
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E-mail Xinhua, November 21, 2016
The battles' heat is scorching Syria's northern city of Aleppo with the prospects so dim as a result of the widening gap between the conflicting parties as well as the ideas for defusing the tension.
Aleppo, Syria's largest and once an economic hub, is under the spotlight again, with the intensified battles, which makes the situation in Aleppo a summary of the entire conflict in Syria, as it has become an arena for international conflict.
Backed by Russia, the Syrian government wants the rebels in the rebel-controlled part east of Aleppo to evacuate the city, for the army forces and government institutions to take over.
In the other hand, the Western-backed rebels refuse the government solution, turning down several calls for safe exit out of Aleppo.
The UN special envoy to Syria, Staffan de Mistura, arrived in the capital Damascus to discuss a plan and a proposition for ending the violence there with Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem.
In a press conference held Sunday evening after his meeting with al-Moallem, Mistura acknowledged that he had "substantial differences" with al-Moallem regarding solving the situation in Aleppo.
One of the differences, Mistura said, is about the Syrian forces' bombing of hospitals in the rebel-held part east of Aleppo, as Mistura said that the Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem totally denied the claims.
"We do have a difference of opinion as there is a total denial of any aerial bombing of hospitals in eastern Aleppo while we have reports that there has been tragic bombing of hospitals in Aleppo and that's why we should be allowed to send a verification team to Aleppo...to verify the damage of the hospitals," Mistura said.
Earlier on Sunday, the World Health Organization (WHO) reportedly said that all hospitals in rebel-held areas east of Aleppo were rendered out of service as a result of the intense shelling. Activists also confirmed the claim.
"I called for a halt of all aerial bombing on hospitals," Mistura told reporters.
Meanwhile, Mistura highlighted some items in the UN "humanitarian" plan for Aleppo.
The plan includes medical evacuation of 200 civilians, after receiving reports about the hospitals bombing.
It also includes entering medical aid to the civilians who are unable to leave, as well as delivering food aid to eastern Aleppo.
Additionally, the plan also urge for an international rotation for doctors in eastern Aleppo, due to the lack of medical personnel in eastern Aleppo as a result of the shelling.
Mistura said the Syrian government has not yet agreed on the plan, while the rebels in eastern Aleppo gave an initial approval.
He also touched upon UN proposals for ending the violence in Aleppo, firstly starting by stopping the bombings from all warring parties.
Secondly, the evacuation of the al-Qaida-linked Nusra Front and civilians who want to follow their leads.
Other militants who want to stay can remain there but not Nusra, Mistura stressed.
The envoy also clarified that he had suggested local administration for the rebels in eastern Aleppo, not autonomy, adding that the foreign minister rejected this idea.
"Moallem rejected a local administration in eastern Aleppo and my answer was clear that we respect the principle of Syria sovereignty," Mistura said.
For his part, al-Moallem said his government rejected the UN envoy's proposal for rebel autonomy in eastern Aleppo.
The idea of establishing autonomy for the rebels in eastern Aleppo is completely rejected, al-Moallem said.
The top Syrian diplomat added that he didn't sense a desire from the envoy for the resumption of the inter-Syrian dialogue.
Al-Moallem added that Mistura said he had no guarantees that the rebels would respect a cease-fire in Aleppo.
The foreign minister clarified that a decision was made in Damascus that all of Aleppo must return under government control.
He made it clear that the rebels must evacuate eastern Aleppo so that the government institutions could return to that part of the city.
"It makes no sense that the fate of 275,000 civilians in eastern Aleppo be a hostage for six or seven thousands rebels," the minister said.
Regarding the evacuation of the wounded and sick from eastern Aleppo, the minister said that the Syrian government had offered three previous chances, which ended without any response from the other side.
"It's the duty of the Syrian state to rescue its citizens from being hostages to the terrorists," he said.
This comes as The Syrian army on Sunday advanced into a rebel-held area in the country's northern city of Aleppo, capturing rebel command centers, a military source told Xinhua.
Syrian forces advanced into the rebel-held Masaken Hanano area, east of Aleppo, capturing command centers in that area after the collapse of the rebels' defenses, the source said on condition of anonymity.
The army also captured five rebel posts in the same neighborhood, said the source, adding that light, medium and heavy weaponry as well as artillery shelling was used during the battle.
Furthermore, the source said the Syrian army is bringing in reinforcement to Aleppo to take part in flushing the rebels from eastern Aleppo.
Meanwhile, activists said 176 people were killed during the past five days of intense battles in Aleppo.
The Syrian government said that at least seven children were killed and 20 others were critically wounded when a rebel mortar attack hit a school in the al-Furqan neighborhood in the government-controlled part west of Aleppo.
Aleppo was also a reason behind a tension between the U.S. and its western allies and Russia, as the West accused Moscow and the Syrian government of committing "war crimes" in Aleppo, while the latter camp accused the West of supporting terrorist groups in Aleppo to prolong the crisis.
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