Russian and Syrian warplanes on Tuesday halted their airstrikes on Syria’s besieged city of Aleppo in preparation for a temporary truce that Moscow has announced for later in the week, the Russian defense minister said. Both Russian and Syrian air raids on Aleppo were suspended on 10 a.m. Tuesday, Shoigu said. At that time, Russian and Syrian militaries will desist from any offensive actions. “The early halting of airstrikes is necessary to declare a ‘humanitarian pause’,” Shoigu said in a televised statement. A Russia-U.S.-brokered cease-fire collapsed last month as the Syrian army launched an offensive on eastern Aleppo under the cover of Russian warplanes.

Source: The Hindu October 18, 2016 09:22 UTC