Syria and Russia's Plan to Open 'Safe Routes' for Civilians and Militants to Exit Aleppo

Sergei Shoigu, the Russian Defense Minister, announced on Thursday that Russian and Syrian army forces have launched a 'large-scale humanitarian operation' in the city of Aleppo. The Russian Defense Minister stated that the aim of this operation is to assist the residents of Aleppo and called on international aid organizations to join this 'humanitarian operation.' According to Sergei Shoigu, three humanitarian safe routes will be established to facilitate the exit of civilians from Aleppo, and another route will be created for militants who wish to surrender. Bashar al-Assad, the President of Syria, also announced in a televised speech on Thursday that rebels who lay down their arms and surrender to Syrian authorities within three months will be granted amnesty. Aleppo and its surrounding areas are one of the centers of conflict between rebels and Syrian government forces. According to the Associated Press, about 300,000 civilians are trapped in Aleppo, as the siege by Syrian government forces tightens daily. Several human rights organizations have warned of a potential 'humanitarian catastrophe' in Aleppo. According to Reuters, Stefan de Mistura, the UN Special Envoy for Syria, described the humanitarian situation in Aleppo as 'critical' and stated that the residents of the city have only two to three weeks of food supplies left. He expressed ignorance about the details of the Moscow and Damascus operation to create humanitarian safe routes, stating that he was not consulted on this operation. Stefan de Mistura also urged the US and Russia to expedite their cooperation to end the civil war in Syria. He had previously expressed hope that an agreement between the US and Russia, including a ceasefire agreement and a political transition in Syria, could lead to progress in peace negotiations. John Kerry, the US Secretary of State, visited Moscow in late July to discuss the Syrian crisis and announced after meeting with Russian officials that the two countries had agreed to military cooperation to combat terrorist groups. Meanwhile, on Thursday, Human Rights Watch accused Russian and Syrian military forces of using cluster bombs. The human rights organization reported that it had documented 47 instances of cluster bomb use in various provinces of Syria over the past two months, resulting in the deaths of dozens of civilians in opposition-controlled areas. At the same time, hospital sources reported that the number of casualties from a suicide bombing on Wednesday, August 6, in the Kurdish city of Qamishli in northern Syria reached 67. This suicide bombing, claimed by the 'Islamic State' group, is considered the most devastating explosion in Qamishli during the five years of the civil war in Syria. The civil war in Syria, which began in March 2011, has resulted in over 270,000 deaths and displaced half of the country's population. Separately, the 'Jabhat al-Nusra' group announced that it has separated from al-Qaeda and changed its name to 'Jabhat Fatah al-Sham.' Abu Muhammad al-Julani, the leader of Jabhat al-Nusra, expressed gratitude to al-Qaeda leaders for understanding the necessity of this action in a video message broadcasted on Al Jazeera. According to Reuters, Abu Muhammad al-Julani stated, 'With this action, the US and Russia can no longer refer to this group as a branch of al-Qaeda and attack Syrians.' During several ceasefires established in Syria, Jabhat al-Nusra, like the 'Islamic State' group, was not included in the ceasefire, and attacks by Bashar al-Assad's forces and their supporters against their positions continued. Jabhat al-Nusra, which announced its existence in January 2012, is one of the armed groups fighting against Bashar al-Assad's forces.