​Can Putin’s ‘Butcher of Syria’ save Russia from another rout?

"Russia’s General Sergei Surovikin is no stranger to mass murder and spreading terror. In Chechnya, the shaven-headed veteran officer, who has the physique of a wrestler and an expression to match, vowed to ‘destroy three Chechen fighters for every Russian soldier killed.’ And he’s remembered bitterly in northern Syria for reducing much of the city of Aleppo to ruins. The 56-year-old air force general also oversaw the relentless targeting of clinics, hospitals and civilian infrastructure in rebel-held Idlib in 2019, an effort to break opponents’ will and send refugees fleeing to Europe via neighboring Turkey. The 11-month campaign ‘showed callous disregard for the lives of the roughly 3 million civilians in the area,’ noted Human Rights Watch in a scathing report....”

Ukrainian servicemen and police officers stand guard in a street after a drone attack in Kyiv on October 17, 2022

No comments:

Post a Comment