This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/24/world/middleeast/aleppo-syria-airstrikes.html

The article has changed 10 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 2 Version 3
‘Doomsday Today in Aleppo’: Assad and Russian Forces Bombard City ‘Doomsday Today in Aleppo’: Assad and Russian Forces Bombard City
(about 2 hours later)
Syrian government forces and their Russian allies launched a major new offensive on opposition-held areas of Aleppo on Friday, bombarding the city with dozens of airstrikes and threatening to launch a ground invasion.Syrian government forces and their Russian allies launched a major new offensive on opposition-held areas of Aleppo on Friday, bombarding the city with dozens of airstrikes and threatening to launch a ground invasion.
A video shot by a witness showed buildings burning after an airstrike on the Mwasalat neighborhood in the eastern part of the city.A video shot by a witness showed buildings burning after an airstrike on the Mwasalat neighborhood in the eastern part of the city.
The escalation was the clearest sign yet that efforts to restore a cease-fire that ended this week had failed, and that the Syrian government and its Russian backers had returned to trying to stamp out the rebel movement and seize ground through military force.
The bombing Thursday night and Friday morning shook the ground and made streets impassible, according to anti-government activists in Aleppo.The bombing Thursday night and Friday morning shook the ground and made streets impassible, according to anti-government activists in Aleppo.
“Can you hear it? The neighborhood is getting hit right now by missiles. We can hear the planes right now,” Mohammad Abu Rajab, a radiologist in Aleppo, told Reuters. “The planes are not leaving the sky: helicopters, barrel bombs, warplanes.” “There are no more roads to walk on,” said Zaher Azzaher, an Aleppo activist reached through WhatsApp. “Even between our neighborhoods, the roads are full of rubble and destruction.”
The assault Friday on Aleppo left residents buried in the rubble, including a child in the al-Marja neighborhood of the city. The assault Friday on Aleppo left residents buried in debris, including a child in the al-Marja neighborhood of the city.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which opposes the government and tracks the conflict from Britain, said at least 27 people had been killed in the overnight bombardment of Aleppo. Witnesses in the city reported more casualties. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which opposes the government and tracks the conflict from Britain, said at least 27 people had been killed in the overnight bombardment of Aleppo. Aid workers in the city said the death toll was higher, and deadly bombings were reported in other parts of northern Syria as well.
The escalation was the clearest sign yet that efforts to restore a cease-fire that ended this week had failed, and that the Syrian government had returned to trying to stamp out the rebel movement and seize ground through military force. “You don’t know if you might stay alive or not,” said Modar Shekho, a nurse at al-Dakkak hospital in opposition-held eastern Aleppo.
Ammar al-Salmo, head of Aleppo’s Civil Defense Force, a volunteer rescue squad, said that three of his group’s centers had been bombed, and that some of their rescue vehicles had been knocked out. Ammar al-Salmo, head of the Aleppo branch of Syria Civil Defense, a volunteer rescue organization, said that three of his group’s centers had been bombed and that some of their rescue vehicles had been knocked out.
“It is as if Russia and the regime used the truce only to maintain their weapons and plan on next targets,” Mr. Salmo said from Aleppo. “It is like doomsday today in Aleppo.”“It is as if Russia and the regime used the truce only to maintain their weapons and plan on next targets,” Mr. Salmo said from Aleppo. “It is like doomsday today in Aleppo.”
The Syrian government announced the new offensive in its state-controlled news media on Friday, quoting an unnamed Syrian military official who described the Aleppo operation as “comprehensive” and said it could continue for some time. The official said the operation would “include a ground offensive.”The Syrian government announced the new offensive in its state-controlled news media on Friday, quoting an unnamed Syrian military official who described the Aleppo operation as “comprehensive” and said it could continue for some time. The official said the operation would “include a ground offensive.”
The intensified assault on rebel-held parts of Aleppo came after efforts to revive a partial cease-fire in the conflict stalled in New York, where diplomats from the International Syria Support Group had been meeting on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly annual session. That appeared unlikely, as many analysts have said that the Syrian miliary does not have the manpower to seize and hold significant territory. Its air force, however, is able to pummel rebel-held areas.
Russia’s deputy foreign minister, Gennady Gatilov, said Friday that no new agreements were expected, according to the Interfax news agency. The intensified assault on Aleppo came after efforts to revive a partial cease-fire in the conflict stalled in New York, where diplomats from the International Syria Support Group had been meeting on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly annual session.
Jean-Marc Aryault, the foreign minister of France, one of the members of the International Syria Support Group, said he feared the diplomatic paralysis reflected a growing weariness with the daily horrors of the Syrian war. Secretary of State John Kerry met informally on Friday with his Russian counterpart, Sergey V. Lavrov, and told reporters that their talk had yielded “a little bit of progress.”
Mr. Kerry gave no further detail, and it remains unclear whether Russia is willing to accept his proposal for a flight ban over critical areas in Syria.
Speaking at his own news conference, Mr. Lavrov said the United States had failed to ensure that moderate Syrian rebels separated themselves from extremist militants of the Qaeda-allied Nusra Front. Until that happens, Mr. Lavrov said, any other measures would be “senseless.”
Jean-Marc Aryault, the foreign minister of France, one of the members of the International Syria Support Group, said earlier on Friday that he feared the diplomatic paralysis reflected a growing weariness with the daily horrors of the Syrian war.
“Will we be inured to this?” he asked. “Let’s not let Aleppo become the 21st-century Guernica.”“Will we be inured to this?” he asked. “Let’s not let Aleppo become the 21st-century Guernica.”
Aleppo, Syria’s largest city and industrial center before the civil war began in 2011, has been divided for years between government and rebel forces.Aleppo, Syria’s largest city and industrial center before the civil war began in 2011, has been divided for years between government and rebel forces.
Before the partial cease-fire declared last week, rebels would often shell civilian neighborhoods in western Aleppo, and the government of Bashar al-Assad regularly bombed rebel-held eastern Aleppo, cutting civilians off from much needed aid.Before the partial cease-fire declared last week, rebels would often shell civilian neighborhoods in western Aleppo, and the government of Bashar al-Assad regularly bombed rebel-held eastern Aleppo, cutting civilians off from much needed aid.
The map below, based on data from a United Nations report issued in February, shows the location of damaged buildings in Aleppo.
A preliminary analysis of new satellite imagery from as recently as this month shows more damage, said Lars Bromley, a research adviser at Unosat, a branch of the United Nations that has analyzed satellite data since the conflict began. The more recent destruction has occurred on the northwest outskirts of the city and in industrial areas in the northeast.
Despite the violence, most of the city’s front lines have remained stable, with both sides lacking the manpower necessary to seize and hold significant new territory.Despite the violence, most of the city’s front lines have remained stable, with both sides lacking the manpower necessary to seize and hold significant new territory.