Russia did not shake its hand to bomb Syria's Idlib region

[Blexfraptor]

The UN asked Russia and Turkey to avoid a 'bloodbath' in the country's last rebel stronghold.

 

The UN asked on Tuesday to Russia and Turkey to avoid a "bloodbath" in the last rebel stronghold of Idlib, when Russian planes resumed their bombing after a pause of 22 days. Staffan de Mistura, UN peace envoy for Syria, asked the presidents of Russia and Turkey to negotiate urgently. He invited "President Putin and President Erdogan, (...) to be called by telephone," although both are scheduled to meet with their Iranian counterpart in Tehran on Friday.

"Let's try to avoid what may be the last great battle of the Syrian territorial conflict ... end up in a bloodbath," de Mistura asked journalists. Russia and Turkey have "the key to a bloodless solution in Idlib," he said.

In Geneva, the head of the UN humanitarian group on Syria, Jan Egeland, said that "we are ready for war, but we pray that there will be no war."

Idlib is the last Syrian region that Damascus does not control. 60% of the province is dominated by Hayat Tahrir al Sham (HTS, consisting of former members of Al Qaeda), and there are also multiple rebel militias. According to the UN, an offensive in
Idlib could cause 800,000 people to leave their homes and cause "a humanitarian catastrophe".

The conflict in Syria, begun in 2011, has already left more than 350,000 people dead and millions displaced. Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov said the Syrian army "is getting ready to solve" the problem of "terrorism" in Idlib province.

"A new focus of terrorism was formed (...) and that leads to the general destabilization of the situation," he told reporters, two days before a Russian-Turkish-Iranian summit on Syria in Iran.

This statement came after US President Donald Trump warned Syria, Russia and Iran not to launch an attack on Idlib, as it would trigger a "human tragedy." "President Bashar al-Asad should not rashly launch an attack on the province of Idlib.

The Russians and the Iranians would be committing a grave humanitarian error if they take part in this potential human tragedy, "Trump tweeted." Hundreds of thousands of people would die. Do not let that happen! "he added.

"Let's be clear, our position remains that if President Bashar al-Assad elects to use chemical weapons again, the United States and its allies will respond quickly and appropriately," White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said in a statement.