US condemns 'brutal' assault on Syria's Eastern Ghouta
Washington accuses Moscow of ignoring UN Security Council resolution calling for a 30-day cessation of hostilities
An injured Syrian man covered in dust lies on a bed awaiting medical attention at a makeshift hospital in the rebel-held town of Douma, in the besieged Eastern Ghouta region on the outskirts of the capital Damascus, following reported regime bombardment on March 3, 2018. PHOTO: AFP
WASHINGTON:
The United States on Sunday condemned Syria's "brutal" Russian-backed assault on the Eastern Ghouta rebel enclave that has reportedly left hundreds of civilians dead.
"The United States condemns the ongoing military offensive that the Assad regime, backed by Russia and Iran, is perpetrating against the people of Eastern Ghouta," the White House said in a statement, referring to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
Washington also accused Moscow of ignoring a UN Security Council resolution calling for a 30-day cessation of hostilities, saying Russia has killed "innocent civilians under the false auspices of counterterrorism operations."
US blasts Russia over strikes on Syria rebel enclave
"This is the same combination of lies and indiscriminate force that Russia and the Syrian regime used to isolate and destroy Aleppo in 2016, where thousands of civilians were killed," it said, referring to Syria's one-time economic hub, which was devastated by the country's civil war.
The White House also called on pro-regime forces to "immediately cease targeting medical infrastructure and civilians" in Eastern Ghouta.
Assad's forces have seized over a quarter of the enclave on Damascus's eastern edges after two weeks of devastating bombardment, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor.
The advance on the back of air strikes, artillery fire and rocket attacks that are reported to have killed more than 650 civilians, sent hundreds into flight to western parts of the enclave.
The United States on Sunday condemned Syria's "brutal" Russian-backed assault on the Eastern Ghouta rebel enclave that has reportedly left hundreds of civilians dead.
"The United States condemns the ongoing military offensive that the Assad regime, backed by Russia and Iran, is perpetrating against the people of Eastern Ghouta," the White House said in a statement, referring to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
Washington also accused Moscow of ignoring a UN Security Council resolution calling for a 30-day cessation of hostilities, saying Russia has killed "innocent civilians under the false auspices of counterterrorism operations."
US blasts Russia over strikes on Syria rebel enclave
"This is the same combination of lies and indiscriminate force that Russia and the Syrian regime used to isolate and destroy Aleppo in 2016, where thousands of civilians were killed," it said, referring to Syria's one-time economic hub, which was devastated by the country's civil war.
The White House also called on pro-regime forces to "immediately cease targeting medical infrastructure and civilians" in Eastern Ghouta.
Assad's forces have seized over a quarter of the enclave on Damascus's eastern edges after two weeks of devastating bombardment, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor.
The advance on the back of air strikes, artillery fire and rocket attacks that are reported to have killed more than 650 civilians, sent hundreds into flight to western parts of the enclave.