10-Hour Ceasefire in Aleppo Begins Today

After the last ceasefire was cut short, Russia has made another temporary promise of hope. Early this morning a 10-hour Russian-declared ceasefire for opposition-held areas of Aleppo began. The goal of this is to encourage civilians and surrendering rebels to evacuate the area.

During the last ceasefire, the UN failed to evacuate injured people, saying it could not obtain security guarantees in time.

From another perspective, the rebel forces have rejected the Russian plan as an attempt to reduce international pressure. Yasser al-Youssef, from the politburo of the Nureddin al-Zinki rebel brigade in Aleppo described the Russian’s initiative as follows:

“This announcement is worthless. We don’t trust the Russians or any of their cheap initiatives,” said Yasser al-Youssef, from the politburo of the Nureddin al-Zinki rebel brigade in Aleppo.
To date, more than 250 000 people have remained in east Aleppo, and area besieged by government forces since July. In September, Syria’s army launched an operation to recapture the east, killing hundreds of people and destroying infrastructure, including hospitals.

Last week, rebel forces attempted to break the siege on eastern Aleppo, and after several uneventful days, opposition fighters another phase of their operation. This occurred on Thursday, and sparked heavy clashes with government forces on several fronts on the western outskirts of Aleppo.

However, correspondents in the area have described things as quiet this morning, with no sounds of fighting heard and no air strikes.