In Aleppo, the Free Syrian Army has a few hundred of its fighters inside the city’s neighbourhoods, in addition to other fighters from other factions as well as Jabhat Al Nusra — the terrorist organisation fighting everyone — said the London-based Pan-Arab paper Asharq Al Awsat.
“These factions are being confronted by troops that had been mobilising for months and who have resorted to the complete destruction of neighbourhoods in an attempt to empty them from their residents and take over the most important city in the Syrian war. After Aleppo, fighting will move to another city and the battles will continue. It is because there is no political solution amid Iran’s insistence to hold on to the man responsible for all this bloodshed, just as they are clinging on to Hezbollah — the indirect rulers of neighbouring Lebanon, who have caused 20 years of instability in the country.”
The United Nations Special Envoy Staffan de Mistura has made it clear that “between now and December, if we cannot find a solution, Aleppo will not be there anymore”, said Lebanon’s Daily Star. “Victory in Aleppo, which will tip the balance of the war, is possible because [Russian President] Vladimir Putin ... has demonstrated a keen ability to utilise the timing in the absence of any reaction from the United States, with US President Barack Obama giving up on Syria, even as his country focuses solely on the presidential election ...”
Practically, no Syrian civilian, including the injured, took advantage of the three days of truce in Aleppo to leave the war-torn city, and for good reason, said the Jordan Times. “Unless the ‘fleeing’ people can be assured of a safe haven after they leave Aleppo, they cannot put themselves at the mercy of the besieging Syrian army. Whether the fears of Aleppo residents are exaggerated is not really the issue. The fact is that the residents of east Aleppo fear the Syrian forces and view them as their enemy. There was also talk of civilians being used as human shields by the extremist forces that occupy this part of the city. So the situation is not rosy for the Syrians of east Aleppo.”
Flashpoint Mosul
The Saudi Gazette said that the battle for Mosul will be a definitive turning point. “What it will probably not do is eradicate the radical ideas that produce the seemingly never-ending chain of terrorist organisations in Iraq, Syria, Libya and Egypt. Nor can anyone predict the consequences that will follow when Daesh (the self-proclaimed Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant) fighters are dispelled to other extremist breeding grounds such as Libya and sub-Saharan Africa. In short, there is a big difference between defeating and eliminating Daesh and its affiliates,” the paper said.
The battle for Mosul is no longer an Iraqi battle as internal, regional and international factors have entered the fray, making it seem as if it is a miniature version of a World War, said the UAE’s Al Khaleej. “Every party has its goals and justifications for participating ... Some are twisting international laws and harnessing them for their interests. In the process, we have forgotten something called Arab chivalry and a joint Arab fate — neglecting the Zionist menace that threatens Arab nations’ existence ... Blood is being shed in Aleppo, Mosul and other Arab cities. And we are paying the price dearly, which should have actually been sacrificed for Palestine.”
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