Orient Net - The Washington Post
The cease-fire in Syria has now nominally lasted more than five weeks, at least in the sense that its death has not been declared by its international sponsors. It arguably has saved hundreds of lives.
It’s important to point out, however, what the accord brokered by the Obama administration with Russia has not accomplished. So far, it has not stopped the regime of Assad from continuing offensives against strategic territory held by opposition forces that joined the truce. It also has not opened corridors for humanitarian aid into those areas, which are occupied by hundreds of thousands of people.
Much of the regime’s military activity has been aimed at the suburbs of Damascus, including an area known as Eastern Ghouta. According to reports by the United Nations and Human Rights Watch, the government has continued to block aid to at least six areas in the region, populated by 250,000 people, since the cessation of hostilities began on Feb. 27.
Even where humanitarian convoys have gotten through, aid workers say Assad regime forces have stripped them of vital medical supplies, including surgical equipment and antibiotics.
Meanwhile, the bombing continues. Last Thursday, a regime airstrike hit the Damascus suburb of Deir al-Asafir, killing 33 people, including at least a dozen children. Last weekend, a regime plane bombed a hospital in the opposition-held town of Azaz, near the border with Turkey, The Washington Post reported.
