After the apparent end of the Islamic State, foreign forces are now fighting openly in Syria. On one side are Syria, Russia, and Iran; on the other, America and Israel. Turkey is the third party on the ground.
After a long time, there was some relief in eastern Ghouta near the Syrian capital of Damascus. On Monday, the Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a 5-hour ceasefire daily on humanitarian grounds, in the midst of increasing pressure from the international community. After the announcement of the ceasefire, a large number of people started coming out of hiding.
The ceasefire will be applicable from 9 AM to 2 PM. During this period, it’s been planned that the citizens of eastern Ghouta will be evacuated. Russia has promised to help the people who are sick and wounded. According to some reports, the ceasefire will be implemented with the help of the Syrian government.
There is a stronghold of rebels in eastern Ghouta. In the past few weeks, Assad’s army has carried out heavy attacks with its air force and tanks in the area. This year, from February 19-26, Russia has also allegedly carried out many air strikes in the region. Under the aegis of air strikes, the Syrian army took military action on the ground in the so-called ‘last stronghold of the rebels’. More than 500 people were killed and thousands injured in the army bombing in just five days in the past week.
The United Nations Security Council unanimously endorsed a 30-day ceasefire. Only then did Russia and Syria have to declare a temporary ceasefire. The UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said that the 5-hour ceasefire was better than nothing. He also described the circumstances of eastern Ghouta as hell on earth, before demanding an immediate ceasefire in the region.
It’s evident that Bashar al-Assad now wants to destroy the last stronghold of the rebels. A civil war has plagued Syria for the past seven years. Protests against President Assad began in 2011. Since then, the demonstrators have often demanded the release of political prisoners and the President’s resignation.
On his part, Assad has tried to eliminate the opposition using power. Consequently, an armed struggle broke out between Assad and the opponents. At the same time, the Islamic State emerged. Since then, more than 3,00,000 people have been killed in Syria, according to reports in 2016.
It’s also clear that Russia wants to save Assad in some way. According to reports, Russian and Iranian fighters are fighting for Assad in Syria. At the same time, Moscow is also testing its weapons in Syria. Iran, on the other hand, wants to increase the influence of the Shia community in Syria.
However, Israel is disturbed by the interference of Iran. At the same time, the US, which was crushing the Islamic State with the help of the Kurds, is still standing its ground with them. Meanwhile, Turkey is still attacking the Kurdish strongholds of in northern Syria.
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