World
The Syrian government forces and rebel fighters agreed to extend the temporary truce in the city of Aleppo by another 48 hours. The announcement came as the U.S. and Russia vowed to scale up their efforts in resolving the five-year conflict in Syria. However, amid the news of truce extension, fresh clashes were reported when Syrian jets raided a town seized by Islamist rebels.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry called on both the sides to adhere to their commitments of maintaining peace in the region, writes Reuters. The warring sides have entered into multiple “local truces” since April 29 but the ground situation remains grim with violence erupting between security forces and rebel fighters.
Criticizing the extension of the truce, Asaad al-Zoubi, the head negotiator for the Syrian opposition at the Geneva talks, said that such moves were only allowing President Bashar al-Assad to consolidate his troops by bringing reinforcemenst from Iran.
In a joint U.S.-Russian statement, the two powers appreciated the “progress” while acknowledging that a lot remained to be done to ensure humanitarian access to the besieged areas, notes ABC News. Washington assured assistance to its regional allies in blocking the movement of fighters, weapons and funds to militant outfits across their borders.
