Assad government agrees to six-week ceasefire in Aleppo

#aleppo #syria #assad #mortarfire #SOHR It has been reported in dailymail.co.uk dated 19 February 2015 that the government of Syria has agreed to put on hold airstrikes and artillery shelling on Aleppo for six weeks to see if a ceasefire is workable in the city which is divided into a rebel-controlled west and government-held east.
This has been informed by the United Nations envoy to Syria by Staffan de Mistura who was briefing the Security Council in a closed session on his latest efforts to find a solution to the civil war that has torn Syria apart over the past four years.
In his opinion, the fresh development should be viewed as a 'glimmer of hope' and emphasized the need for a political solution to the conflict. He would also have to convince the opposition and obtain their support for the plan – this would mean they would have to suspend rocket and mortar fire in the same period.
Incidentally, in spite of the agreement to a ceasefire by the regime of Assad, battles have been raging in and around Aleppo and have resulted in the death of killed at least 70 pro-government fighters apart from another 80 insurgents in the last 24 hours.
This was the outcome of a fresh offensive launched in Aleppo by the army. The army, backed by local allied militia, had captured areas north of Aleppo. As per the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, this was basically an attempt to encircle the city and throttle the supply lines.
The conflict in Syrian began in 2011 with protests against President Bashar al-Assad and has gradually taken the shape of a civil war, drawing in foreign fighters on both sides. According to UN estimates, the total number of casualties is nearly 220,000 while millions have fled to neighboring countries to seek refuge.

Another interesting blog - Citizen Journalist

Another interesting blog - Ramblings

Jordan Air Force bombs ISIS targets in retaliation of burning alive a Jordanian pilot

#KingAbdullahII #jordan #ISIS #MaazalKassasbeh It was a retaliatory action by Jordan against the ISIS militants due to their burning alive a pilot Maaz al-Kassasbeh who had been captured by the militants in Syria as reported in nzherald.co.nz dated 6 February 2015. He was captured by ISIS in December following the crash of his F-16 fighter aircraft in Syria.
King Abdullah II was briefed on the attacks by the armed forces chief of staff – the attacks were carried out by the Jordanian Air Force eagles. It seems the aircrafts struck ISIS training camps apart from their weapons and ammunition stores.
Location of the targets have not been disclosed but, as per information, the targets were destroyed and the aircraft were safe, they have returned to base safely.
These news have come even as people were killed when rebels unleashed rocket fire on Damascus and the forces of President Bashar al-Assad retaliated.
King Abdullah II cut short his US visit and returned to Amman after the video of Kassasbeh's killing emerged. Later, he visited the family of the slain airman to pay his condolences.
The military of Jordan has vowed to not only destroy the ISIS but also ‘kill the evil in its own place’ and punish them for perpetrating the heinous act of burning the pilot alive.
The situation in Syria is a matter of concern for the world. In a recent spate of attacks, at least 66 people, including 12 children, were killed by regime air strikes and shelling on rebel areas around Damascus as revealed by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. The assault took place on the Eastern Ghouta region and occurred when the rebels fired more than 100 rockets at the city, killing 10 people including a child.
Incidentally, Jordan has been carrying out raids on a regular basis as a part of the US-led campaign against the ISIS Sunni extremist group and over 200,000 people have lost their lives ever since anti-government protests erupted in Syria in early 2011. There is destruction and death all over the country and, with the escalation of a multi-sided civil war, the jihadists got an opportunity to enter and create mayhem.

Another interesting blog - Citizen Journalist

Another interesting blog - Ramblings

US hardens its stand on eradicating Evil – warns Syria over ISIS missions

President Barack Obama has authorized U.S. airstrikes inside Syria as part of a broad campaign to root out the Islamic State militant group news.fox.com. Of course strikes have not yet been launched but the United States has made it clear that it would retaliate against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's air defenses in case he decided to go after American planes that would be launching airstrikes in his country.
Officials have indicated that the U.S. is aware of location of Syrian air defenses, along with their command and control centers, and if Assad were to use those capabilities to threaten U.S. forces, it would mean inviting trouble and would put his air defenses at risk.
Incidentally, the rise of the Islamic State group to prominence has put President Obama on the brink of being drawn into a Syrian conflict that he has long sought to avoid. The situation is complex for the US to take direct action in foreign soil where the country is locked in an intractable civil war. Obviously, the conflict has created odd alliances, because both the U.S. and the Assad regime are now fighting a common enemy namely, the Islamic State militant group.
However, Obama does not want to strengthen Assad’s hand – rather, he wants to side with the rebels. He wants to train and arm the Western-backed rebels in Syria hoping that they can both fight the Islamic State and, ultimately, the Assad regime.
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