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Syria outlines plans for conquest of Aleppo, backed by Russian power

 
Published July 29, 2016

BEIRUT, Lebanon — The Syrian government and its powerful Russian allies laid out a road map Thursday for subduing the rebel-held districts of the city of Aleppo by opening corridors for civilians to flee and offering amnesty to insurgents who lay down their arms.

But residents and rebel fighters remained deeply skeptical of those offers.

Control of Aleppo, Syria's most populous city before the civil war began five years ago, has been a main objective of the conflict's combatants. The city has been divided since 2012, with government forces controlling the western half and rebels holding districts in the east.

But Russia's military intervention has provided an edge to the forces of President Bashar Assad, allowing them to cut off access to the city's rebel-held areas, while also making life inside them worse through shelling and airstrikes against markets, bakeries and medical facilities.

The new plan was presented Thursday in coordinated announcements from Moscow and Damascus, along with airdrops over Aleppo of small food packs and maps indicating the escape routes.

The Russian defense minister, Sergei K. Shoigu, said three routes out of eastern Aleppo would be opened for civilians, who would be given food and medical care. A fourth route would be opened for armed insurgents.

But many Syrians, Western diplomats and international aid groups doubted the sincerity of Russia, contending that Russia had previously shown little concern for the plight of civilians in rebel-held areas, and that the Syrian government had frequently employed brutal siege tactics against its foes.