Alwaght- The Syrian Arab Army has liberated some 60 percent of the regions previously controlled by militant and terrorist groups in the Northern Province of Aleppo.
As the Syrian army advances on Aleppo, international and regional countries that have been backing militants since the onset of war in the Arab country are doing their best to stop army through mediums, namely the media, international bodies that are supposed to end conflict not fuel them, and by pressuring Russia into backing out.
Media war
The media war has largely been focusing on the humanitarian side of the conflict, mainly by blaming deaths and displacement on the government instead of ISIS.
For example, the Pro-militants Syrian Observatory for Human Rights has reported the escape of 50,000 people from areas under the control of armed factions in eastern Aleppo to areas under the hold of the Syrian army and Kurdish units. Syria’s SANA news agency said “thousands of families that had been besieged by terrorist organizations have managed to leave as Syrian army forces received them and transported them to safe areas.”
However, countless media outlets had been incessantly working on distorting the image of the Syrian army by suggesting that the government’s shelling is the cause of this escape. They have even gone as far as claiming that Syrian strikes targeted civilians while they were fleeing and other such lies.
For instance, Aljazeera continues to back the so-called rebels, a label that is being used as a euphemism for Al-Nusra Front and its likes, by blaming Damascus for casualties.
“Dozens of civilians tried to flee rebel-held east Aleppo but were forced to retreat by gunfire, as the Syrian army and its allied militias on Wednesday pressed on with an offensive to recapture the whole city,” read a news report earlier this week.
It also questioned the government’s accusation that militants were using civilians as human shields.
Yet, if that were not the case, then why would civilians wait so long to flee the city where they were going through humanitarian hardships? Simply, because the militants wouldn’t let them.
What Western and other media also fail to point out is that civilians are heading to government-held areas to seek security. In addition, they are being received, sheltered, and provided for by the army. This is one side the propagandists deliberately omit from their fabrications.
UN resolutions
On Friday, the United Nations Security Council held an emergency meeting to “look into the situation in Aleppo. Talks were initiated to draft a resolution to end the fighting in Syria against the backdrop of the humanitarian crisis in Aleppo.
However, many believe the French foreign minister’s call for the meeting was less about civilians’ well-being and more about targeting Damascus.
Vitaly Churkin, Russia’s envoy to the UN, said Paris’s sudden concern about civilians in Aleppo is an attempt to distract attention from humanitarian issues of the Western-backed operation in the Iraqi city of Mosul.
Churkin added that the French initiative is a ploy meant “to accuse the Syrian government and Russia of something, especially, at the time when the Syrian authorities launch a counter-offensive in an attempt trying to regain control of some territories.”
Thus far, no UN resolution has been successful in ending the bloodshed, primarily because the focus is hardly ever on ISIS and its terrorism as much as it is on Syrian President Bashar Assad.
US Russian Negotiations
Another front that has been recently unlocked is US negotiations with Russia aimed at putting an end to the latter’s support for the Syrian army.
While Moscow seeks to persuade the Washington into halting its support for the so-called moderate rebels, it seems clear that the US has set its mind on dissuading Russia from continuing its support for the Syrian government in its fight against terrorism.
In recent years, Russia has stood by Syria. Its military intervention has had significant implications in the battlefield. By breaking off the Russians from Syria’s circle of allies which includes Iran and Hezbollah, the West hopes for the rest to follow.
However, President Vladimir Putin has been clear on this issue, vowing to stay by Damascus’s side.
Aleppo's Significance
But why has Aleppo received so much media and political attention?
The answer lies in its geopolitical status.
The Northern Province shares borders with Turkey and has been the main channel for arms and foreign militant smuggling from the west into Syria. Being the second largest province of Syria, Aleppo is of symbolic significance for terrorists and its fall will deal a great blow to them. After liberating Aleppo, Syrian army will be able to concentrate its forces to recapture other areas from militants.
Conclusively, when the Syrian war is on the brink of another major victory, it is also a step closer to liberating the war-ravaged country. However, this also means that the West will conspire against to keep Syria in a whirlpool of violence in order to achieve political gains. This is not only done through the continuing support for the so-called moderate rebels but also the media, international bodies, and false bids for negotiating a way out of the crisis.
