Greater Idlib: Militants Block Humanitarian Crossings Opened Under Russian-Turkish Agreement (Photos)

Support SouthFront

Saraqib crossing. Click to see full-size image.

On March 25, Syrian authorities reopened two humanitarian crossings with militant-held areas in the northwestern region of Greater Idlib.

The first crossing is located near the town of Saraqib in the southern Idlib countryside, while the second is located in the western countryside of Aleppo, in the town of Abu Zindain.

The two crossings were reopened under an agreement brokered by Russia and Turkey a day earlier. Another crossing located near the town of Mizanaz in the western Aleppo countryside should be reopened soon.

The humanitarian crossings saw no movement whatsoever as they are still blocked by al-Qaeda-affiliated Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the de facto ruler of Greater Idlib.

The Russian-Turkish agreement was met with a backlash from opposition supporters in Greater Idlib who organized a campaign against opening any crossing with government-held areas. Furthermore, Abdurrahman Mustafa, head of the Turkish-backed Syrian Interim Government, declined to acknowledge the agreement.

“We affirm that this news is not true in its entirety and that the Syrian Interim Government will never give up on the fundamentals of our blessed revolution and will never deviate from the demands of our proud people,” Mustafa wrote on Twitter.

The Turkish Ministry of National Defense, which is a part of the agreement, is yet to release a statement on the matter. HTS is also still silent.

The agreement could to be another trick by Ankara, which is yet to fulfill any of the commitments it made to Moscow under the March 5, 2020 agreement on Greater Idlib.

MORE ON THIS TOPIC:

• US-led Coalition Ships More Armored Vehicles To Northeastern Syria (Video)
• The U.S. Continues To Smuggle Oil While Turkey Complains To Russia It Can’t

Support SouthFront