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gathering at the entrance of the humanitarian corridor in the Bustan al-Qasr district of Aleppo. This has been reported to RIA Novosti by Syrian militias.
On October 20th at 8:00, a humanitarian pause entered into force. Since Tuesday, Russian and Syrian air forces have ceased strikes, and before the beginning of the humanitarian pause
Syrian troops moved back a distance to allow militants and residents to leave the eastern districts of Aleppo through two specific corridors.
"In Bustan Al-Qasr, 2-2,500 civilians who wanted to use the corridors to flee from East Aleppo gathered.
Nusra militants opened fire on the crowd and did not let them leave. Several people suffered from gunshot wounds," militia sources reported.
Since the morning, terrorists have fired on evacuation points where ambulances and buses are gathered, with mortars and small arms. As residents of the eastern neighborhoods have reported, militants have threatened to shoot anyone who wants to leave the city.
In the humanitarian corridor district in northern Aleppo near the Castello highway, the situation remains calm. Not a single fighter nor civilian has left the Eastern neighborhoods for the past five hours.
Comment: See also:
The militants also
attacked Syrian army positions on the Castello road with small arms and heavy machine guns several minutes before today's pause ended.
Despite their distinctly un-humanitarian behavior, the Nusrats continue to have the Americans' support. The State Department
says they are not "a priority", and have attacked them only once or twice.
Russia has
extended the pause for another 24 hours, making for 4 11-hour pauses. UN advisor Jan Egeland
says "Armed opposition groups say they will enable this to happen." He also
says the UN expects to carry out medical evacuations soon: "We believe we now have all of the green lights that we need both from the Russians and the government and from the armed opposition inside and we hope that the first medical evacuations can take place tomorrow."
Already, in the first day militants killed 14 local Syrian officials (they were publicly executed by Ahrar al-Sham for calling on locals to leave the city via the corridors) and wounded three Russian officers managing the pause. Eight wounded militants used the corridor and received food, first aid, and transport to a rebel-held area. One report
says 150 Ahrar al-Shame militants have made an agreement with the army to leave.
However, it doesn't look like Nusra is allowing civilians to leave. A RIA Novosti correspondent
says that despite the lack of fighting, "Buses and ambulances are still waiting for evacuees, ready to bring them to safety." One of Aleppo's residents
told RIA Novosti by phone: "People want to leave, we are tired of war.
Hundreds of people have gathered in Hananu to demand that militants let us go," the resident said, adding a clashes between al-Nusra [Front] fighters and several militias broke out earlier today in the neighboring Bustan al-Qasr district.
Syrian lawmaker
Jamal Rabia:
Russia has put forth many efforts to find a peaceful resolution to the Syrian conflict. But now it's obvious that the US and its allies are not interested in such a scenario. The current ceasefire will be the last possibility for militants to leave the city. The following cleansing of the city is a military solution, but it will pave the way for talks to resolve the conflict.
Update: Here's how the Russian Reconciliation Center
summed up the first day:
All humanitarian corridors were targeted permanently. Three officers of the Russian Centre for reconciliation of opposing sides have been slightly injured by insurgents' firing against the southern corridor near Suk al-Hai market. The officers have been delivered to the Hmeymim airbase. Their lives are no longer threatened.
Comment: See also:
- Russia ready to extend Aleppo ceasefire for as long as necessary
- Mortar shell hits near journalists filming in Aleppo humanitarian corridor
The militants also attacked Syrian army positions on the Castello road with small arms and heavy machine guns several minutes before today's pause ended.Despite their distinctly un-humanitarian behavior, the Nusrats continue to have the Americans' support. The State Department says they are not "a priority", and have attacked them only once or twice.
Russia has extended the pause for another 24 hours, making for 4 11-hour pauses. UN advisor Jan Egeland says "Armed opposition groups say they will enable this to happen." He also says the UN expects to carry out medical evacuations soon: "We believe we now have all of the green lights that we need both from the Russians and the government and from the armed opposition inside and we hope that the first medical evacuations can take place tomorrow."
Already, in the first day militants killed 14 local Syrian officials (they were publicly executed by Ahrar al-Sham for calling on locals to leave the city via the corridors) and wounded three Russian officers managing the pause. Eight wounded militants used the corridor and received food, first aid, and transport to a rebel-held area. One report says 150 Ahrar al-Shame militants have made an agreement with the army to leave.
However, it doesn't look like Nusra is allowing civilians to leave. A RIA Novosti correspondent says that despite the lack of fighting, "Buses and ambulances are still waiting for evacuees, ready to bring them to safety." One of Aleppo's residents told RIA Novosti by phone: "People want to leave, we are tired of war. Hundreds of people have gathered in Hananu to demand that militants let us go," the resident said, adding a clashes between al-Nusra [Front] fighters and several militias broke out earlier today in the neighboring Bustan al-Qasr district.
Syrian lawmaker Jamal Rabia: Update: Here's how the Russian Reconciliation Center summed up the first day: