UN voices outrage over aid convoy attack in Syria’s Aleppo
The United Nations says that one of its aid convoys has been attacked in the northern Syrian province of Aleppo.
On Monday, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said that at least 18 of 31 trucks in the convoy were hit while parked outside a Syrian Arab Red Crescent center in the province’s Urm al-Kubra region. “We understand a convoy has been hit. We are trying to get more information."
The so-called Syrian Observatory for Human Rights claims the attack was carried out by Syrian or Russian jets, and that 12 Red Crescent drivers were killed in the attack.
The United Nations special envoy to Syria, Staffan de Mistura, has voiced anger over the airstrike. "Our outrage at this attack is enormous ... the convoy was the outcome of a long process of permission and preparations to assist isolated civilians."
France has also condemned the attack, noting that it shows the country’s need for a ceasefire.
"France strongly condemns the destruction of a humanitarian convoy in Syria and the death of all the personnel in it," said French Foreign Ministry spokesman Romain Nadal. "This destruction illustrates the urgency of a ceasefire."
The incident occurred after Syria's army announced the end to the week-long ceasefire brokered by the US and Russia, and blamed militants' lack of commitment for the failure of the truce.
“We are deeply shocked that humanitarian workers and missions have yet again suffered from the brutality of this conflict,” said a spokesperson with the International Committee of the Red Cross.
Meanwhile, the Syrian military has announced that the army has successfully deterred a Daesh terrorist attack on a key army base located on Aleppo’s southwestern outskirts.
Earlier, Russian officials said that monitors in Syria had registered 53 ceasefire violations across the country before the truce officially ended.
Aleppo, Syria's second largest city, has been divided between government forces and foreign-backed militants since 2012. Syria has been gripped by foreign-backed militancy since March 2011. Over the past few months, the militants active in the Arab country have suffered major setbacks as the Syrian army has managed to liberate several areas.
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