ALEPPO, Syria
A temporary ceasefire has been declared between the Syrian regime and Free Syrian Army troops due to the delivery of humanitarian aid to opposition-controlled areas in Aleppo by UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) and the Syrian Red Crescent.
Mamun Ebu Omar, an editor at Shahba Press Agency in Aleppo, told Anadolu Agency that four truckloads of humanitarian aid was transported to storages in al Basatin and Abu al Kusur by small vehicles and wheelbarrows since the roads in the area were in poor condition.
"This is a significant step. It is the first delivery of humanitarian aid to opposition-controlled areas since armed opponents gained control of al-Rashidin six months ago," he said.
Syria opposition says won't field presidential candidate
A leader of Syria's main opposition coalition said Wednesday that the bloc would not field a candidate in July presidential polls "under any circumstances."
"The coalition rejects holding elections when half of the population is displaced and millions are living in tents," Badr Jamous told Anadolu Agency by phone.
"Not to mention the 150,000 people killed and tens of thousands detained and injured in the regime's more-than-three-year-old war on its people," he said.
"Will President Bashar al-Assad present his electoral program in the Zaatari refugee camp or to the sectarian militias that support him, like Hezbollah?" Jamous asked, referring to the camp in next-door Jordan that currently hosts over 100,000 Syrian refugees.
Jamous went on to voice doubt that any "honorable" opposition figure would run in the upcoming elections.
On Tuesday, the Syrian government asserted that it had no intention to postpone the polls, in which al-Assad is widely expected to stand for a third term.
Last week, the 11 nations that comprise the so-called "Friends of Syria" group slammed the regime's calls to hold presidential elections, which the coalition described in a statement as "a parody of democracy."
Syria has remained in the throes of conflict since early 2011, when a peaceful uprising against al-Assad escalated into full-fledged civil war following a violent government crackdown.
According to the U.K.-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, more than 136,000 people have been killed since the conflict began.
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