The Syrian Army announced an end to the U.S. and Russian-brokered ceasefire Monday only an hour before it was set to expire. The break comes less than two days after an American-led coalition accidentally hit the Syrian Army with airstrikes, and placing the ceasefire on tenuous ground.
Initially, the Americans and Russians wanted to see if the ceasefire would hold for a week. The original plan stipulated warring would stop between the Syrian regime and the rebel groups, and that only attacks against ISIS or Al Qaeda affiliates would be allowed. Aid would be delivered to besieged areas, though the Syrian government prevented that from happening in some cases.
The ceasefire was violated repeatedly in the last week. Nonetheless, it looked set to hold and many Syrians on the ground said they appreciated the halt in fighting. But just an hour before it was set to expire, the Syrian Army announced an end to the ceasefire.
#SYRIA: Syrian army formally announces end of truce – an hour before it was set to expire — pic.twitter.com/9lLtjmvn8N
— Maya Gebeily (@GebeilyM) September 19, 2016
The Syrian civil war began in 2011 after government troops violently suppressed peaceful protests. More than five years later, a couple ceasefires have been attempted, but fighting looks set to continue indefinitely. The last attempted ceasefire was in February 2016 but fell apart quite quickly.
More than 400,000 people have been killed in the fighting. The United States has focused on supporting rebel groups fighting ISIS in Syria, and while ISIS has committed horrid crimes against humanity, the Assad regime has killed far more people.
One of the most severe victims of this war has been Syria’s largest city, Aleppo. While ISIS is virtually absent from the city, that hasn’t stopped the bombardment.
In fact, NBC News reported Monday that there was virtually no sign of the ceasefire or humanitarian aid in besieged parts of Aleppo.
“Air raids by Russian and Syrian warplanes, which haven’t stopped, suggest the truce never started in the first place,” opposition High Negotiations Committee spokesman Riad Nassan Agha told Reuters.
Prior to the Syrian Army’s announcement, many factions claimed they were expecting the ceasefire to crumble. “I imagine in the near future there will be action by the factions,” Zakaria Malahifji,a politburo chief from a prominent rebel group called Fastaqim, told Reuters.