 |
Aid agencies have warned that
|
He told reporters progress was being made on a plan to reduce the violence in the second city of Aleppo, which has threatened to sink the nine-week truce.
But he accused the Syrian government of "blatantly violating" the agreement to halt hostilities and allow aid in.
About 250 people have reportedly been killed in Aleppo in the past nine days.
On Monday, fresh government air strikes and artillery attacks on rebel-held districts and suburbs of Aleppo left at least three dead, activists said.
Mr Kerry, speaking alongside UN special envoy Staffan de Mistura after a morning of talks in Geneva, said the conflict in Syria was "in many ways out of control and deeply disturbing".
 |
John Kerry,
|
He said the cessation of hostilities had had "a profoundly positive effect" and saved many lives, but in recent weeks it had been "put to the test".
"It has frayed in certain areas and fallen completely in a few areas," he said.
"We are engaged in an effort with all members of the international Syria Support Group and with Russia, particularly, in an effort to restore that cessation of hostilities in those places where it been most at risk or most shredded."
The secretary of state also announced a beefing up of the negotiations in Geneva, with additional US and Russian officials posted there.
Mr Kerry said a recent air strike on a hospital in Aleppo, which he blamed on the Syrian government, was "unconscionable" but he added that both sides, the opposition and the regime, had contributed to "this chaos".
Later on Monday, Mr Kerry spoke by telephone to his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov. Both men reiterated calls for all sides to observe the cessation of hostilities, the Russian foreign ministry said.
Mr de Mistura will travel to Russia on Tuesday.
- Russia's continuing war
- Has opportunity for peace been lost?
- What is left of Syria?
- Assad's growing confidence
Mr Kerry's trip to Geneva was hastily arranged after Mr de Mistura appealed to the US and Russia, which back opposing sides in Syria's five-year conflict, to rescue the cessation of hostilities they brokered in February.
At the start of his meeting with Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir on Monday, the US secretary of state said he would press rebel groups operating in Aleppo to separate themselves from the powerful jihadist group, al-Nusra Front.
"This is what we're discussing, among other things. There are a number of different ways to approach it," Mr Kerry told reporters.
AFP
Reuters
"We're getting closer to a place of understanding. But we have some work to do."
The Syrian government and Russia have said the Aleppo air strikes are targeting only al-Nusra, which is affiliated to al-Qaeda and is excluded from the cessation of hostilities along with the rival Islamic State group.
However, the opposition and the US have dismissed the claim, and accused the government of targeting civilians and rebels abiding by the cessation of hostilities.
"What is happening in Aleppo is an outrage. It's a violation of all humanitarian laws. It's a crime," Mr Jubeir said, adding that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad would be held accountable and would be removed from power either through a political process or by force.
The fighting in Aleppo has also seen dozens of civilians killed in rebel artillery attacks on government-held areas.
After at least 50 people were killed in a reported government air strike on a hospital last Wednesday night, the International Committee of the Red Cross warned that Aleppo was being "pushed further to the brink of humanitarian disaster".
Large parts of the city have been destroyed and its infrastructure has been severely damaged, leaving civilians without water and electricity for months.
The talks in Geneva come a day after the Syrian military extended a "regime of calm" around the capital, Damascus, for another 24 hours.
The unilateral truce also covers the northern countryside of the coastal province of Latakia,
More than three dozen rebel factions said on Saturday that they would not respect the truce, unless the government agreed to extend it over the whole country.
0 comments:
Post a Comment