US to Russia: Stop Aleppo Assault or Syria Talks End

Horrific scenes from Aleppo are released to the world daily – streets empty except for rubble, wounded children, and dire shortages of food, water and other basic supplies. The United States, Russia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and other countries have taken sides in the civil war that has raged since 2011. Ceasefires do not hold, and the power vacuum has opened space for multiple terrorist groups including the Islamic State. Russia expands its definition of “extremists” to cover rebels battling against the autocratic and minority government of Bashar al-Assad. “The US has threatened to suspend cooperation with Russia over Syria, hours after the bombardment of two hospitals in rebel-held areas of Aleppo, as Syrian government forces backed by Moscow continued their offensive to retake the eastern part of the city from opposition fighters,” reports Al Jazeera. Syria’s ambassador to the United Nations laughed when asked about the hospital bombings. More than 400,000 Syrians have died. Another 11 million have been displaced from their homes. One side or the other will wrest control of Aleppo, but the bitterness and repercussions will linger for decades. – YaleGlobal