The rain of horrors upon the embattled people of Aleppo seems unending. Now they will be left without even talk about humanitarian aid because the UN Envoy for Syria suddenly suspended negotiations just eight minutes after they began today.
Envoy Staffan de Mistura said continuing to talk makes “no sense” because none of the warring sides is willing to agree on a temporary pause to allow aid convoys to reach stricken civilians.
Nearly two million people including more than 100,000 children face death from hunger and disease because of insufficient safe-water, food and medicines.
The talks had held out hope that international pressure led by the UN might shame fighters from all sides to stop shooting for at least 48 hours.
The hope now is that Russia and the US, which provide most of the armed support, will put sharp enough pressure on their proxies to facilitate relief for civilians trapped in various parts of Aleppo.
“Tomorrow (August 19) is World Humanitarian Day, and in Syria what we are hearing and seeing is only fighting, offensives, counter-offensives, rockets, barrel bombs, mortars, hellfire cannons, napalm, chlorine, snipers, airstrikes, suicide bombers,” de Mistura complained.
“I decided to use my privilege as Chair (of the talks) to declare that there was no sense in having a humanitarian meeting today unless we got some action on the humanitarian side in Syria.”
Negotiators including Russia and the US began regular humanitarian aid meetings in Geneve early this year. They were created by the International Syria Support Group (ISSG) which comprises the UN, the Arab League, the European Union and 16 other countries.
The situation for ordinary people is dire because no aid convoy has reached the target localities of Madaya, Zabadani, Foah and Kafraya for 110 days.
Russia, which has offered daily pauses lasting only three-hours, voiced support for the 48-hour pause after de Mistura’s outburst. But reaching such a truce would need a miracle. If that happens, the humanitarian aid talks may restart next week.
De Mistura did not apportion guilt but many analysts blame the impasse on Russia and Iran.
Russia caused consternation this week by flying bombing raids into Syria from Iran. A nonplussed Washington accused Moscow of violating UN Security Council resolutions banning arms deliveries to Iran.
But its allegations are not credible since no UN decision bans a country from responding to an Iranian invitation to use bases in Iran to station warplanes and personnel.
The real astonishment is that Washington failed to detect such a massive Russian deployment of long-range bombers and heavy ordinance while they were entering and being placed inside Iran.
This a truly massive intelligence failure for the very extensive US intelligence resources in the region.
The suspension of humanitarian talks is an indirect way of naming and shaming Moscow just a day after the Russians starting their bombing missions from Iran. But it suggests desperation in the face of Russian guile rather than effective policy.