Russia Mediates to End Siege on Kurdish Neighborhoods in Aleppo

A security region in al-Hasaka (Asharq Al-Awsat)
A security region in al-Hasaka (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Russia Mediates to End Siege on Kurdish Neighborhoods in Aleppo

A security region in al-Hasaka (Asharq Al-Awsat)
A security region in al-Hasaka (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Russia is mediating in the crisis between the Autonomous Administration and the Syrian government, aiming to lift the siege on Kurdish neighborhoods in the northern province of Aleppo and Qamishli, according to Kurdish sources.

An official said that the government is now in control of the departments operated by the Internal Security Forces (Asayish) in Qamishli.

An informed Kurdish source said that the commander of the Russian forces at the Hmeimim base held meetings in Qamishli between representatives of the Autonomous Administration and government officials as part of efforts to lift the blockade on the Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafieh neighborhoods in Aleppo.

The agreement stipulated that the government forces allow the entry of foodstuffs, fuel, medicine, and other needs of civilians into the Kurdish neighborhoods of Aleppo. In return, Asayish troops will hand over the Baath automatic oven, remove roadblocks, open the Qamishli Airport road, and ensure that each side returns to the agreed lines of contact.

He pointed out the preliminary agreement between the two sides may enter into force soon.

The Asayish measures in Qamishli intend to pressure the Syrian government to expel the 4th Division, led by Maher al-Assad, who is the President’s brother, from the Ashrafieh, Sheikh Maqsoud, and al-Shahba neighborhoods, according to the source.

The source stressed that if the government does not respond to the Russian mediation, Hasaka will face the same fate as Qamishli, ruling out the possibility of a military confrontation between the two sides.

Asharq al-Awsat’s reporter witnessed the withdrawal of the Asayish forces from the Grand Serail in Qamishli, the Baath Party headquarters, and the rural and city divisions.

However, they continue to besiege the security services buildings, and, for the first time in years, established temporary barriers at the entrances and exits of the roads leading to them.

The spokesman for the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria, Luqman Ahmi, said that the siege imposed on the Kurdish neighborhoods of Aleppo is a "war crime."

He told Asharq Al-Awsat that the administration responded to all mediation efforts and wanted to lift the siege peacefully, but those efforts did not yield any results.

Ahmi stressed that the government adopted this "blockade policy" on other Syrian cities and towns, aiming to subjugate the residents.

The Syrian government claims to represent all the Syrian people and sovereignty, said Ahmi, saying its policy of starving its people did not yield any results and instead created more rejection of the regime.

The spokesman reiterated that the only way to solve the Syrian crisis and its issues is through dialogue between all sides to reach a peaceful political solution that meets the goals and aspirations of the Syrian people.

Meanwhile, the people and the displaced persons of Afrin organized a mass demonstration on the highway leading to the center of Aleppo, denouncing the practices of the Syrian government.

The protesters demanded the lifting of the blockade imposed on the Kurdish neighborhoods, ensuring the freedom of movement of individuals, and the entry of foodstuffs, medicine, fuel, and flour into the area.

They also carried banners calling for removing the Fourth Division's barriers from all roads leading to Sheikh Maqsoud, Ashrafieh, and al-Shahba.

The Fourth Division has imposed significant royalties on cars carrying vegetables that enter the Kurdish neighborhoods of Aleppo since mid-March.

The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), backed by the US-led international coalition, controls most of the cities and towns of al-Hasaka governorate, but the government forces maintain two security areas in the centers of al-Hasaka and Qamishli.

The SDF controls the Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafieh neighborhoods inside Aleppo city.



Israeli Strikes Kill 12 People in Gaza, Keep up Pressure on North

Family members mourn next to the bodies of their loved ones at Nasser Hospital following an Israeli airstrike that claimed the lives of at least eight people in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, 03 November 2024. (EPA)
Family members mourn next to the bodies of their loved ones at Nasser Hospital following an Israeli airstrike that claimed the lives of at least eight people in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, 03 November 2024. (EPA)
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Israeli Strikes Kill 12 People in Gaza, Keep up Pressure on North

Family members mourn next to the bodies of their loved ones at Nasser Hospital following an Israeli airstrike that claimed the lives of at least eight people in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, 03 November 2024. (EPA)
Family members mourn next to the bodies of their loved ones at Nasser Hospital following an Israeli airstrike that claimed the lives of at least eight people in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, 03 November 2024. (EPA)

Israeli airstrikes killed at least 12 Palestinians in Gaza on Monday and residents said they feared new air and ground attacks and forced evacuations were aimed at emptying areas in the enclave's north to create buffer zones against Hamas fighters.

The UN Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA said Israel was scaling back the number of aid trucks allowed into Gaza, compounding shortages of food, medicine and other essential supplies.

Israel denied this. But it said separately on Monday it had officially notified the United Nations that it was ending its relations with UNRWA, which has been a vital provider of aid to Palestinian civilians during the 13-month-long war between Israel and Hamas.

In the latest bloodshed, medics said seven people were killed in an attack on two houses in the north Gaza town of Beit Lahia on Monday. Five more were killed in separate strikes in central and southern parts of the enclave, medics told Reuters.

Several people were wounded in the attacks, they said, adding that Israeli forces had sent tanks into the northeast of Nuseirat camp earlier on Monday.

Israel deployed tanks into Jabalia, Beit Hanoun, and Beit Lahia on Oct. 5, saying it intended to prevent Hamas fighters from regrouping.

The Palestinian Health Ministry said Israeli forces were continuing to bomb the Kamal Adwan Hospital and had injured many staff and patients.

"The medical staff cannot move between the hospital departments and cannot rescue their injured colleagues. It seems that a decision has been made to execute all the staff who refused to evacuate the hospital," it said.

There was no immediate comment from Israel on that situation.

Palestinians said the new offensives and orders for people to leave were "ethnic cleansing" aimed at emptying two northern Gaza towns and a refugee camp to create buffer zones. Israel denies this, saying it is combating Hamas fighters who launch attacks from there.

The Hamas-run Gaza government media office put the number of Palestinians killed since Oct. 5 at 1,800. It said 4,000 others were wounded.

There was no confirmation on the figure from the territory's health ministry and Israel has repeatedly accused the Hamas media office of exaggerating the figures of the dead.

Israel says its forces have killed hundreds of Palestinian gunmen and dismantled military infrastructure in Jabalia in the past month.

More than 43,300 Palestinians have been killed in more than a year of war in Gaza, according to Gaza authorities, and much of the territory has been reduced to ruins.

The war erupted after Hamas-led fighters attacked Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages back to Gaza, according to Israeli tallies.

'UNSPEAKABLE SUFFERING'

UNRWA head Philippe Lazzarini said on Monday that Israel has scaled back the entry of aid trucks into the Gaza Strip to an average of 30 trucks a day, the lowest in a long time. This represented only 6 percent of the commercial and humanitarian supplies that used to enter Gaza before the war, he said.

"This cannot meet the needs of 2 million people, many of whom are starving, sick, and in desperate conditions," Lazzarini said on X.

An Israeli government spokesman said no limit had been imposed on aid entering Gaza, with 47 aid trucks entering northern Gaza on Sunday alone.

Israeli statistics reviewed by Reuters last week showed that aid shipments allowed into Gaza in October remained at their lowest levels since October 2023.

Earlier on Monday, Israel's foreign ministry said it had officially notified the United Nations it was cancelling the agreement that regulated its relations with UNRWA since 1967 - effectively banning it.

"Restricting humanitarian access and at the same time dismantling UNRWA will add an additional layer of suffering to already unspeakable suffering," Lazzarini said.