Fall of Aleppo unlikely to end war in Syria: German FM

By Ayhan Simsek

BERLIN

Russia should not have the illusion that the fall of Aleppo would end the war in Syria, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said Tuesday.

Speaking at a joint press conference with Danish counterpart Anders Samuelsen in Berlin, Steinmeier underlined a military victory of the al-Assad regime against armed opposition groups in eastern Aleppo would not end the conflict.

“The war will likely continue through different means, with a combination of military confrontation and terrorist attacks. It would not stop, it would continue in other places in Syria,” he said.

Steinmeier renewed his call for cessation of attacks in eastern Aleppo, and underlined that there would be no military solution to the conflict

“There needs to be a return to political discussions about the political future of Syria,” he said.

Germany’s top diplomat also expressed grave concern over recent reports of violence and killings targeting civilians in eastern Aleppo, after regime forces entered areas previously controlled by opposition groups.

He called on Russia and Iran, allies of the Bashar al-Assad regime, to play their roles to prevent a humanitarian tragedy in eastern Aleppo.

“Those who can leave eastern Aleppo now, let it be fighters or most importantly civilians, should be allowed to do so,” he said, adding any violence against them should be prevented.

"There has to be an opportunity for those people who have lived through the hell of Aleppo to find a way out,” he added.

According to the UN, the Syrian regime forces entered homes and shot dozens of civilians dead during its offensive in eastern Aleppo on Monday.

Over the course of the last 27 days, an estimated 990 civilians have been killed in eastern Aleppo in attacks by the Syrian regime and allied militias, according to local source-based reports from the city.

Syria has been locked in a devastating civil war since early 2011, when the Assad regime cracked down on pro-democracy protests -- which had erupted as part of the "Arab Spring" uprisings -- with unexpected ferocity.

Since then, hundreds of thousands of people are believed to have been killed and millions more displaced by the conflict.