US, UN condemn Israeli airstrike on Aleppo airport
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – The United States (US) and the United Nations (UN) raised on Wednesday concern over the recent airstrikes that targeted Aleppo International Airport that may prolong disrupting humanitarian aid to people affected by the earthquake that hit Syria on Feb. 6.
Reuters reported, citing US State Department spokesperson Ned Price as saying, that the US would worry about any lengthy halt to the flow of humanitarian aid.
On March 7, Israel airstrike targeted Aleppo’s International Airport and put it out of service.
The airport was being used to deliver aid to the victims of the earthquake.
The closure of the airport could have “severe humanitarian implications for people in Aleppo … and could also affect the wider vulnerable population who need humanitarian assistance,” according to Reuters, quoting Deputy UN spokesman Farhan Haq as saying.
Life-saving supplies must resume without delay, Haq added.
The deputy called on all parties to the conflict in Syria to “abide by their obligations under international humanitarian law,” and take all feasible precautions to spare civilians and their objects in the conduct of hostilities.
In turn, the Humanitarian Coordinator ad interim, El-Mostafa Benlamlih, expressed, in a statement, deep concerns over the implications of the closure of the airport and called on all parties to abide by their obligations.
In addition, Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Nasser Kan’ani condemned the new “Zionist regime’s airstrike” saying, “While the Syrian earthquake victims in Aleppo are experiencing difficult conditions, the Zionist regime is attacking the Aleppo airport … and this is a clear example of a crime against humanity.”
Israel has carried out hundreds of airstrikes inside Syria over the past few years targeting what it says Iranian-backed militia’s strongholds.