UN envoy: Fight for Mosul, don’t forget Aleppo

A UN special envoy cautioned Western powers against turning their focus away from Syria as the battle to retake the city of Mosul from Islamic State (ISIS) unfolds in Iraq. The Iraqi military and Kurdish militias, with support from a U.S.-led coalition, have made slow progress in ISIS-occupied suburbs. Mosul is the last major ISIS stronghold in Iraq, and military officials estimate the battle there could take weeks or even months. In neighboring Syria today, the government suspended air strikes on rebel-held Aleppo ahead of a “humanitarian pause” to fighting on Thursday, giving civilians and rebels a chance to get out of the city. Staffan de Mistura, the UN envoy for Syria, surmised what will happen after that: “Between now and December, if we cannot find a solution, Aleppo will not be there anymore. … If the world is watching Mosul, Aleppo should not be forgotten.”