Germany's top diplomat has rebuked Moscow for contributing to the "terrible humanitarian catastrophe" in Aleppo. The UN has called on Russia to hand over control of a humanitarian operation in the besieged city.
Image: picture-alliance/AA/I. Ebu Leys
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German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier on Friday placed part of the responsibility for the humanitarian crisis unfolding in Syria's Aleppo on Russia.
"Russia shoulders particularly great responsibility in this difficult situation on account of its support for the Syrian army and air force," Steinmeier said in a statement from Berlin.
He urged Moscow to "implement a ceasefire" and work with the UN to facilitate "humanitarian access" to Aleppo's besieged residents, who number between 250,000 and 300,000 people.
"Exercising military restraint and allowing humanitarian aid to reach people trapped in besieged areas are what is needed right now. We need there to be an end to violence and a return to the negotiating table," he added.
Remarks made by Germany's top diplomat come a day after the Syrian regime and Moscow announced it would launch a large-scale humanitarian operation by opening corridors in Aleppo for civilians to flee and rebels to surrender.
However, activists in Aleppo's rebel-held areas criticized the proposal, saying it is a front for the Syrian regime to flush out the opposition and arrest them after government troops seized the sole supply route into the area.
"Not only have they cut off the sole lifeline to eastern Aleppo, but they have killed children and women," said Brita Hagi Hassam, the head of the city's local council. "They have also bombed hospitals and vital places in order to force people into submission."
The Save the Children charity organization said a maternity hospital it supports in Aleppo's rebel-held area had been bombed on Friday, adding that casualties were reported.
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UN suggests takeover
Meanwhile, UN Syria envoy Staffan de Mistura on Friday called on Russia to hand over control of the corridors to ensure the operation is strictly humanitarian.
"Our suggestion is to Russia to actually leave the corridors being established at their initiative to us," de Mistura said at a press briefing in Geneva.
"The UN and the humanitarian partners … have experience. That's our job. Bringing humanitarian assistance and supplies to civilians, wherever they happen to be, is exactly why the UN is there," he added.
However, Russian Deputy Defense Minister Anatoly Antonov rebuked criticism that the corridors served other purposes aside from a humanitarian operation.
"We are ready to do everything we can to deliver aid to peaceful citizens who are hostages of the terrorists, and even to those militants who wish to lay down arms," Antonov said, according to Russian news agency Interfax.
US State Secretary John Kerry on Friday warned Moscow that if the humanitarian operation is a ruse, it would break US-Russia cooperation in Syria, where both are also fighting the "Islamic State" militant group.
How the Syrian civil war began - and gave 'Islamic State' room to grow
Although the emergence of "IS" prompted international intervention in Syria, the jihadist group entered the conflict late in the game. DW examines how the war created space for this terrorist group to expand.
Image: AP
The "Arab Spring" effect
In 2011, as regimes crumble across the region, tens of thousands of Syrians take to the streets to protest against corruption, high unemployment and soaring food prices. The Syrian government responds with live ammunition, claiming some 400 lives by May.
Image: dapd
Condemnation without consensus
At the urging of Western countries, the UN Security Council condemns the violent crackdown. The EU and US implement an arms embargo, visa bans and asset freezes in the months that follow. With the backing of the Arab League, calls eventually grow for the Syrian president's departure. But not all UN members agree with this demand.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/J. Szenes
Assad refuses to back down
Bashar al-Assad - who has been in power since the death of his father in 2000 - sees his reputation wane with the continuing unrest. He refuses to end decades-long emergency rule, which allows for surveillance and interrogation. Russia backs its ally, supplying weapons and vetoing UN resolutions on Syria multiple times.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/Y. Badawi
The opposition gets organized
By the end of the year, human rights groups and the UN have evidence of human rights abuses. Civilians and military deserters are slowly beginning to organize themselves to fight back against government forces, which have been targeting dissidents. More than 5,000 have died so far in the fighting. It will take another six months before the UN acknowledges that a war is taking place on Syrian soil.
Image: Reuters/Goran Tomasevic
Outside intervention
In September 2012, Iran confirms that it has fighters on the ground in Syria - a fact long denied by Damascus. The presence of allied troops underscores the hesitance of the US and other Western powers to intervene in the conflict. The US, stung by failed interventions in Afghanistan and Iraq, sees dialogue as the only reasonable solution.
Image: AP
Fleeing the conflict
As the death toll nears 100,000, the number of refugees in neighboring countries - such as Turkey and Jordan - hits one million. That number will double by September 2013. The West and the Arab League have seen all attempts at a transitional government fail in the two years of war, watching as fighting spills over into Turkey and Lebanon. They fear Assad will stay in power by any means possible.
Image: Reuters/B. Khabieh
No united front against Assad
Assad has long claimed he's combatting terrorists. But it's not until the second year of war that the fragmented Free Syrian Army is definitely known to include radical extremists. The group Al-Nusra Front pledges allegiance to al Qaeda, further splintering the opposition.
Image: Reuters/A. Abdullah
From brute force to chemical warfare
In June 2013, the White House says it has evidence that Assad has been using sarin nerve gas on civilians - a report later backed by the UN. The discovery pushes US President Barack Obama and other Western leaders toward considering the use of military force. However, Russia's proposal to remove the chemical weapons ultimately wins out.
Image: Reuters
Islamic State emerges
Reports of a new jihadist group calling itself the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) emerge in the final weeks of 2013. Taking land in northern Syria and Iraq, the group sparks infighting among the opposition, with some 500 dead by early 2014. The unexpected emergence of IS ultimately draws the US, France, Saudi Arabia and other nations into the war.
