Over 60 Killed in 24 Hours as Aleppo Violence Worsens

Dozens have been killed seemingly every day lately in the northern city of Aleppo, and seems to be escalating even further, with over 60 people killed, overwhelmingly if not exclusively civilians, in the past 24 hours as the Syrian military and al-Qaeda trade shots in the contested city.

Last night’s violence, which began the 24-hour span, saw an airstrike hitting and destroying a major hospital in the al-Qaeda-held eastern portion of the city, killing at least 27 civilians. 34 more civilians were killed on Thursday, including at least 14 civilians killed in al-Qaeda’s shelling of the city’s west.

Aleppo has been a contested city throughout the five year civil war, with initial pushes by rebels and military into the city being presented as likely to be decisive in the conflict. The predictions of victory didn’t pan out for either, but the presentation of Aleppo as a mirror for the overall war may have been prescient, as both the city and the nation have been war torn disasters ever since.

The surging death toll in Aleppo comes as the ceasefire, in place since late February, seems to be collapsing, though with al-Qaeda itself not a party to the pact, the violence there is largely symptomatic of an increased willingness to fight, as opposed to outright violations of the deal.