FROM BAD TO WORSE

Nearly 2 Million Without Water in Aleppo After Airstrikes

After government forces captured a rebel-held area with more airstrikes.

Nearly 2 million people in Aleppo have been left without running water amid a spike in fighting, as the Syrian government on Saturday captured a rebel-held area on the outskirts of the besieged city. Government forces pounded rebel-held areas surrounding Aleppo and took over the rebel-controlled Palestinian refugee camp of Handarat, leaving dozens dead and cutting off the water supply. The Local Coordination Committees put the death toll at 45 on Saturday alone, while the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights estimated that 25 people had been killed. Residents described the fighting as the worst they’ve seen since 2012. The United Nations has blamed the bombardment for two million civilians being left without water, as the airstrikes damaged a major water pumping station. Any hope for a ceasefire appears to have gone out the window, as state media on Friday cited an unnamed military official saying that not only would the airstrikes continue, but there would soon be a ground offensive as well.