Targeting Daesh alone will not end crisis, insist Syrian opposition

The National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces said on Wednesday that targeting Daesh alone will not lead to a solution of the Syrian crisis. In a message to the UN Security Council, the coalition stressed the importance of ending arbitrary aerial bombardments by forces loyal to the Assad regime, Quds Press has reported.

“After the Paris terror attacks,” explained Najib Al-Ghadban, the coalition representative at the UN, “it is clear that the only way to end the terror threat represented by Daesh is through a political solution that topples Assad and his aides, as well as fulfils the ambitions of the Syrian people.”

He pointed out that aerial bombardment is the prime killer of Syrian civilians. “About 62 per cent of October’s deaths resulted from aerial bombardment. Russian bombs alone killed 263 people in October, including 86 children and 44 women.”

The Syrian official noted that the arbitrary attacks feed the migrant crisis in Europe and encourage recruitment for Daesh. He called on the UN Security Council to guarantee the protection of civilians all over Syria and stop arbitrary aerial bombardment by imposing a no-fly zone. “Syrians should also be included in the Vienna talks in order to strengthen the chances of success,” he added.