The So Called Cease Fire in Syria is Over

The ridiculous cease fire negotiated by president Obama for Syria is ending.  There was supposed to be an end to fighting between the Assad forces and the rebel forces other than ISIS and al Qaeda.  It never happened; there was a reduction in fighting on some fronts, but no cease fire.  There was supposed to be open channels for humanitarian aid to reach trapped civilians.  It never happened.  The Assad/Russian/Iranian forces kept convoys of aid from reaching the nearly 300,000 starving civilians in Aleppo.  Some aid got to smaller pockets of trapped civilians, but the main group in Aleppo was and is still starving.  Getting aid to these poor people was one of the main aims of the cease fire according to John Kerry.  From the moment the deal was signed, however, it was clear that the Assad forces would never let aid through.  There was supposed to be a joint effort made by Russian and American forces against ISIS.  That too did not happen.  Instead, we actually saw American planes hit a target given to us by the Russians.  It turned out to be Assad forces who were hit.  That mistake certainly diminished the credibility of American air power in the region.  Israel was not involved in any way with the cease fire or the fighting prior to the agreement.  Since the agreement was signed, there has been a wave of attacks by the Syrians on Israel.  There has not yet been much in the way of retaliation by the Israelis for the attacks.  Such a response, however, is surely coming.

Not long ago, Russia was supposedly a pariah which had invaded Ukraine and with whom the West would have no dealings.  Obama made clear that this is no longer the case.  He agreed that the USA would cooperate with Moscow in fighting ISIS.  For that reason alone, the cease fire was a big victory for Putin and a loss for the USA.