Horror in Aleppo

The tide of the Syrian war might be turning. The Syrian rebel army suffered its biggest defeat since 2012 as it ceded major parts of East Aleppo to Syrian government forces over the weekend. The months-long siege of East Aleppo, which has left the residents of the area on the brink of starvation, has worked. Rebel-held territory in the area has been split into two, which makes the fall of Aleppo almost inevitable. As many as ten thousand residents of the area fled to government or Kurdish-controlled areas as fighting intensified and the shortage of food and medicine became worse. Last week, international aid workers claimed that the parts of Aleppo under siege had only 10 days of food and medical supplies left. At least 250,000 people, almost halg of them children, are still residing in East Aleppo and are on the brink of mass starvation. With the victory of the Syrian government troops, it seems even more unlikely that the path for UN aid will be opened up for the starving residents. In fact, it could show the Syrian government that mass starvation can work as a strategy.

The UN has described these conditions as the ‘apex of horror’ – and yet there has been little to no action taken by international actors to stem the brutal violence in Syria. Hospitals are closed and food is running low as winter is descending on Syria. It means that East Aleppo will not be able to hold its own against the Syrian government for long. There will be a mass massacre or mass starvation – that is the choice confronting those still in the area. Neither of these possibilities will end the five-year old conflict in Syria. Winning control over Aleppo would only be a symbolic victory for the Syrian government. It simply cannot militarily win the ongoing war. Nor can rebel forces. That is why anti-government fighters agreed to allow UN aid to flow into East Aleppo. Coming amidst renewed claims of the use of chemical weapons on civilian populations by the Syrian government, international inaction over the Syrian conflict seems even more criminal. A UN inquiry has confirmed the use of chemical weapons by both the Syrian government and Isis. Anywhere between two and ten chlorine attacks have been reported to occur within the last fortnight. As this situation unfolds, the international community has appeared more clueless than ever before on how to handle the Syrian conflict. With Donald Trump set to take charge as president in the US, it seems that the old paradigm on a ‘minus Assad’ solution for Syria might be ditched. It seems stakeholders are ready to allow mass starvation to take place so they can win back Aleppo. This is no solution to war.