UN fears for hundreds of thousands if government troops encircle Aleppo
Hundreds of thousands of civilians could be cut off from food and medical supplies if Syrian government forces manage to encircle rebel-held areas of Aleppo, the UN has said.
"If the GoS (government of Syria) and allies sever the last remaining flight route out of eastern Aleppo City it would leave up to 300,000 people, still residing in the city, cut off from humanitarian aid unless cross-line access could be negotiated," the United Nations Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said in an urgent bulletin.
Syrian government forces backed by Iranian and Lebanese Hezbollah fighters and Russian air strikes have embarked on a major offensive around Aleppo, which is divided between government and rebel control.
Only Russia, Iran operating legitimately in Syria: official
Russia's deputy foreign minister Oleg Syromolotov has said that only Russia and Iran are operating legitimately in Syria and that the U.S.-led coalition against the IS group has no legal basis for carrying out operations in the country.
"In this current situation it is not possible to speak about the legitimacy of anti-terror forces in Syria of any foreign countries apart from Russia and Iraq. The U.S.-created "anti-terrorism coalition" has no such legitimacy -- either by UN Security Council sanction or by invitation from the legal Syrian government," Syromolotov told RIA Novosti.
Kremlin: no credible evidence of casualties in Russia's Syria air strikes
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said that there is no credible evidence that Russian air strikes in Syria have caused civilian casualties, RIA Novosti reports.
Peskov was responding to comments yesterday by German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who said that she was "appalled" by the suffering in Syria caused by Russia's bombing campaign.
But Peskov dismissed Merkel's comments.
"As for the German chancellor's words about alleged civilian casualties as a result of Russian air strikes in Syria, we need to draw attention to the fact that despite the enormous number of such claims, so far no one has presented a single piece of evidence supporting these facts," Peskov said.
But what about...
And what about the situation two or three years ago in Syria, when "terrorists" were committing "barbaric acts" in Syria, Peskov went on to ask, rhetorically.
"Unfortunately, we did not hear a similar assessments of the barbaric actions of the terrorists, who attacked and savagely attacked Syrian territory, encircling Syrian military forces and the legitimate authorities of Syria," Peskov said.
"Then we didn't hear any similar assessments from anyone."
UN refugee agency calls on Turkey to open border to Syrians fleeing Aleppo
The UN has urged Turkey to open its borders to the thousands of Syrian refugees fleeing heavy fighting in Aleppo, Reuters reports.
"Turkey has also allowed a number of vulnerable and wounded people in Turkey. However, many people are not being allowed to cross the border. We are asking Turkey to open its border to all civilians in Syria fleeing danger in need of international protection as they have done," William Spindler, spokesman for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, told a news briefing.
Suicide blast in Damascus kills several
There are confused reports about a suicide car bombing in Damascus this morning.
Reuters is reporting that a suicide car bomber blew himself up at a police officers' club in the Syrian capital, killing several people, according to Syria's interior ministry said.
The ministry said that a number of people were also wounded in the blast in the Masken Barza district where several major government buildings are located.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights has put the death toll at eight police officers killed and 20 wounded.
But Syrian state news agency SANA is reporting that three civilians were killed and 14 were injured in the blast. SANA says the attack happened near a fruit and vegetable market, citing a source in the Damascus police command.
Reuters reports that Syrian state TV had reported that the attack occurred near a market but then retracted the report.
IS claims this morning's suicide attack in Damascus
The IS group has claimed this morning's suicide car bombing in Damascus.
From our news desk:
Ambassador: Some 10,000 Russian Citizens Remain In Syria
Russia's ambassador to Damascus says an estimated 10,000 Russian citizens are currently living in war-torn Syria.
Ambassador Aleksandr Kinshchak told TASS news agency that the figure includes those Syrians from mixed families who have Russian passports.
He also said that it was difficult to give an exact figure because many Russian citizens prefer not to be registered at the consulate.
The ambassador said Russian citizens have the possibility to be evacuated from Syria by boarding humanitarian planes returning from the western Syrian city of Latakia to Russia.
Russia launched air strikes in Syria on September 30, helping government forces recapture some territory lost to extremist groups and other opposition fighters in central and western Syria.
Based on reporting by TASS