Rebels Doubt They Will Attend Peace Talks in Astana

Syrian rebels may not attend peace talks in Kazakhstan this week, Reuters reported.

Rebels said they doubted they would attend the Russian-sponsored talks scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday in Astana because Russia has failed to ensure its Syrian government allies abided with December’s cease-fire. Similar peace talks were held in Astana last month, with the aim of consolidating the cease-fire brokered by Russia, Turkey and Iran on December 30.

“The opposition factions will not attend Astana because the Russian side did not abide by what they agreed to before during and after Astana to uphold the cease-fire agreement,” Mohammad al-Aboud, a senior rebel official, told Reuters.

On Sunday, the rebels approved a delegation to attend U.N.-sponsored talks in Geneva scheduled for February 23, Reuters reported.

Rebels in Control of Al-Bab, Turkey Says

Turkish-backed Syrian rebels have siezed most of al-Bab, according to a statement by the Turkish prime minister on Tuesday, Reuters reported.

“Al-Bab has been largely taken under control. Our aim is to prevent the opening of corridors from territories controlled by terrorist organizations to Turkey,” Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said.

Rebels backed by Turkish troops and warplanes have been fighting to take control of al-Bab, a town held by ISIS 20 miles (30km) south of Turkey’s border. Syrian government forces are advancing toward the town from the south.

Turkey launched its “Euphrates Shield” operation in Syria with the aim of pushing ISIS back from its border and stopping the advance of Kurdish fighters in northern Syria.

Humanitarian Catastrophe ‘Looming’ for Besieged Towns in Syria, U.N. Says

Four besieged towns in Syria are facing a “looming humanitarian catastrophe,” a U.N. official warned on Monday, according to Al Jazeera.

“Sixty thousand innocent people are trapped there in a cycle of daily violence and deprivation, where malnutrition and lack of proper medical care prevail,” said Ali al-Zaatari, the U.N. humanitarian coordinator for Syria.

He called on Syrian president Bashar al-Assad to allow lifesaving aid to 60,000 civilians trapped in Zabadani, Madaya, Fuaa and Kafraya. The fate of the four towns are tied together by a complicated “tit-for-tat arrangement” that has “prevented medical cases from receiving proper treatment and evacuation,” al-Zaatari said.

Zabadani and Madaya – about 30 miles (45km) from Damascus – are besieged by government and Lebanese Hezbollah forces. In the northwestern Idlib province, Fuaa and Kafraya are besieged by an alliance of rebels including the jihadist group Jabhat Fatah al-Sham. The last time the U.N. was able to access the four towns was in November.

“People are in need, and they cannot wait any longer. We need to act now,” al-Zaatari said.

RECOMMENDED READS:

• Al Jazeera: Is the PLO Helping or Harming Palestinians in Syria?
• The Telegraph: Turkey Risks Conflict With Syria Regime as It Storms Isil Stronghold
• The New York Times: Syria Used Chlorine Bombs Systematically in Aleppo, Report Says
• Syria Untold: Walking on Death Along the Iraqi Border
• The Middle East Institute: Celebrations of Iranian Revolution Across Syria Shows Iran’s Soft Power Hegemony