Imagine having to suffer so many years, and still to have no hope in a proposed truce plan.
In Syria, desperate residents see little hope in U.N. Aleppo truce plan
BEIRUT/GAZIANTEP, Turkey Thu Nov 27, 2014 3:49pm GMT
1 OF 2. Boys play with a soccer ball in the al-Klaseh neighbourhood of Aleppo in this November 8, 2014 file photo.
CREDIT: REUTERS/HOSAM KATAN/FILES
(Reuters) - As winter sets in along the front lines of Aleppo, residents are desperate for the sort of relief United Nationsofficials hope a new ceasefire push will soon bring to the war-battered Syrian city.
The plan, led by the U.N. peace envoy to Syria, Staffan de Mistura, would set up local truces in so-called "freeze zones" to stop fighting and allow aid into rebel districts.
Residents could certainly use the help. But after nearly four years of conflict and countless failed peace plans, civilians and fighters alike are sceptical.
The initiative is risky for the disparate opposition groups and while the government has stated its interest, diplomats and analysts doubt its sincerity and say Aleppo could face the same fate as the central city of Homs, where government forces have largely regained control.
"We cannot trust any initiative," said Safi al-Masri, a 25-year-old Aleppo resident. "We consider this initiative far from humanitarian after all the Syrian blood that's been spilled."
While other residents and fighters interviewed by Reuters were less categorical in their doubt, saying they would welcome any plan that relieved the city's suffering, most questioned whether it would come to anything.
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In Syria desperate residents see little hope in U.N. Aleppo truce plan Reuters
In Syria, desperate residents see little hope in U.N. Aleppo truce plan
BEIRUT/GAZIANTEP, Turkey Thu Nov 27, 2014 3:49pm GMT
1 OF 2. Boys play with a soccer ball in the al-Klaseh neighbourhood of Aleppo in this November 8, 2014 file photo.
CREDIT: REUTERS/HOSAM KATAN/FILES
(Reuters) - As winter sets in along the front lines of Aleppo, residents are desperate for the sort of relief United Nationsofficials hope a new ceasefire push will soon bring to the war-battered Syrian city.
The plan, led by the U.N. peace envoy to Syria, Staffan de Mistura, would set up local truces in so-called "freeze zones" to stop fighting and allow aid into rebel districts.
Residents could certainly use the help. But after nearly four years of conflict and countless failed peace plans, civilians and fighters alike are sceptical.
The initiative is risky for the disparate opposition groups and while the government has stated its interest, diplomats and analysts doubt its sincerity and say Aleppo could face the same fate as the central city of Homs, where government forces have largely regained control.
"We cannot trust any initiative," said Safi al-Masri, a 25-year-old Aleppo resident. "We consider this initiative far from humanitarian after all the Syrian blood that's been spilled."
While other residents and fighters interviewed by Reuters were less categorical in their doubt, saying they would welcome any plan that relieved the city's suffering, most questioned whether it would come to anything.
Continue reading at:
In Syria desperate residents see little hope in U.N. Aleppo truce plan Reuters
