Aleppo Evacuation Halted Amid Competing Claims From Foreign Powers

Confusion and delays in Aleppo’s evacuation deal continued Friday with the Syrian, Turkish and Russian governments disagreeing on whether it will continue, AP reported.

The Russian military has claimed the evacuation is complete, with all women and children evacuated. The Syrian military and Turkish foreign ministry claim the evacuation has paused temporarily and will resume.

Convoys arranged by the Syrian and Russian governments began to leave eastern Aleppo Thursday afternoon, evacuating civilians, fighters and families to nearby opposition-held areas west of the city, according to the BBC.

The new deal sought to evacuate remaining people in eastern Aleppo to the opposition-held Idlib province, in exchange for a cease-fire and the evacuation of wounded people from two opposition-besieged villages, Fua and Kefraya, in the Idlib province. A previous deal brokered by Russia and Turkey collapsed after facing Iranian opposition and renewed clashes in Aleppo city.

The evacuation was again suspended, with government claims that rebels are not allowing civilians to evacuate from Fua and Kefraya. Only 6,000 people have been evacuated so far from eastern Aleppo, with 50,000 left still trapped inside, 40,000 of whom are civilians, according to the U.N.

Assad Compares Aleppo Takeover to Birth of Jesus in Twitter Video

In a video statement on Thursday, Syrian president Bashar al-Assad hailed the “liberation of Aleppo” as a historic moment, Reuters reported.

“What is happening today is the writing of a history written by every Syrian citizen. The writing did not start today, it started six years ago when the crisis and war started against Syria,” Assad said in a video statement published on his Twitter account.

Assad compared recent events in Aleppo to the birth of Jesus Christ, the revelations of Prophet Mohammad and the collapse of the former Soviet Union.

“History is not the same before and after … I think after liberating Aleppo we will say that not only the Syrian situation, but also the regional and international situation, is different,” he said.

“This history that is being made now is bigger than the word ‘congratulations.’ Everybody is saying congratulations now.”

Europe Must Put Emotion Aside for Syrian Resolution, Says French Presidential Candidate

Western policy on Syria has failed and the European Union needs to talk to all sides, including those responsible for war crimes, France’s leading presidential candidate, Francois Fillon, said on Thursday.

According to Reuters, the conservative candidate and former prime minister, following a meeting in Brussels with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and heads of European center-right parties, said Europe’s efforts have not saved lives.

“I told European leaders that what we are forced to concede today is that Western diplomacy, and in particular European diplomacy, has failed,” Fillon said, rejecting the possibility, and effectiveness, of a U.S. military intervention. “The other option is a strong European diplomatic initiative to bring around the table all those who can stop this conflict, including those who have committed war crimes today.”

“I simply have a lot of respect for Russia. I’ve always said whether Russia’s leader is called Vladimir, Boris or Igor, he is the leader of the biggest country in the world. Europe must have a long-term strategy with Russia and not just act emotionally,” Fillon added.

RECOMMENDED READS:

• The Washington Institute: Will Assad Target Idlib After Aleppo?
• The New York Times: ‘It’s So Sad,’ Donald Trump Says of Syria, Promising ‘Safe Zones’
• Carnegie: The Ansar al-Sham Battalions
• The Huffington Post: Outraged by What’s Happening in Syria? Here’s What You Can Do
• Sverige Radio: Swedish Correspondent Deported From Syria