Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Tuesday rejected calls for a ceasefire in the Syrian Idleb region, saying such a ceasefire would amount to " capitulating to the terrorists and even rewarding them for their activities, "Lavrov said before the Human Rights Council in Geneva. The head of Russian diplomacy has accused some governments of " wanting to justify scandalous acts committed by radical and terrorist groups ".
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Damascus, with support from the Russian air force, launched its offensive in northwestern Syria in December and nearly 900,000 people have been displaced by the violence, according to the UN, which warned on Monday that the fighting " dangerously " approaching their camps, risking a " bloodbath ". Never has Syria, at war since 2011, experienced such an exodus over such a short period.
The Turkish presidents, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and the Russian, Vladimir Putin, the main international actors in the conflict in Syria, concluded in 2018 in Sochi an agreement establishing a "demilitarized zone" in the province of Idleb supposed to separate the positions of the regime from those of rebels and jihadists. But this arrangement has been shattered for the past few weeks and the two sides are blaming each other for its implosion.
Erdogan announced a quadripartite summit on Syria on March 5, an initiative to find a solution to the crisis in Idleb.
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The region is held by rebel groups, dominated by the jihadist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, whose leaders are former leaders of the Syrian al-Qaeda franchise.
In Geneva, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said it was " deeply concerned " about the situation in the Idleb region. “ Winter is very harsh in Idleb, people find themselves trapped, cut off from everything, and have nothing to survive on. This is totally unacceptable, ”said Fabrizio Carboni, the ICRC regional director for the Near and Middle East. " We urge all parties concerned to allow civilians to take refuge in a safe place. Their lives, their dignity, their health and their well-being are at stake, ”he noted.
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As the fighting in Idleb continues and the front lines continue to move, the ICRC finds it " difficult and risky for aid workers and volunteers to access the affected populations ", and calls on all parties to " guarantee guarantees ". 'access and security ' to meet the needs of civilians ' on both sides of the front lines '.
Triggered in March 2011 by the suppression of peaceful demonstrations, the war in Syria has killed more than 380,000 people.