LONDON: Britain renewed a call Tuesday for President Bashar al-Assad to step aside, citing his “barbaric cruelty” towards Syria’s people, as his forces stood poised to recapture Aleppo.
“We do not think that President Assad, who is presiding over such barbaric cruelty to the people of Syria, is a route to a long-term, secure and prosperous future for Syria,” Prime Minister Theresa May’s official spokeswoman told reporters.
“That’s why we think there needs to be a political transition away from Assad.”
Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson later told an emergency debate in the House of Commons that “Assad’s conquest of Aleppo will not mark the end of the war”.
“The victory will turn to ashes in his mouth because even if he reimposes his rule over the rubble of that city, about two thirds of Syria will remain outside his control,” he said.
There were “millions of Syrians viscerally hostile to the rule of a tyrant who has the blood of hundreds of thousands on his hands”, he told MPs.
Johnson urged Russia, which has backed the advance of Syrian government forces with air strikes, and Iran, which provides both financial and military support to Assad’s regime, to “do the right thing”.
They should “abandon their puppet and go forward with a peaceful and political solution”, he said.
He added: “It’s up to them, it’s up to the Russians, it’s up to Iran — they have the future of Syria in their hands.”
Assad’s forces look set to overrun the last pocket of rebel territory in east Aleppo, dealing the biggest blow to opposition fighters in more than five years of civil war.
But the cost of the victory sparked international alarm, after the UN said it had credible reports of pro-government forces in the city executing dozens of civilians.
May’s spokeswoman said the reports were “extremely concerning”, adding: “Our first priority has absolutely got to be to get aid to those whose lives are in danger.
“More broadly we continue to work with partners to look at what steps we can take to make sure people are held to account for their actions there.”
Britain will press fellow European Union (EU) leaders at a summit on
Thursday to secure a “strong, clear statement” on the need for humanitarian access and a ceasefire in Aleppo, she added.
