© Abdalrhman Ismail / Reuters
Russia and Syria on Tuesday claimed they would halt their airstrikes on the besieged city of Aleppo to prepare for a “humanitarian pause” on Thursday. Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said the strikes were suspended at 10 a.m. Tuesday to prepare for the temporary truce from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Thursday—a cease-fire that is meant to allow safe passage out of the city for civilians and rebel militants alike. “The early halting of airstrikes is necessary to declare a ‘humanitarian pause,’” Shoigu said. “It will... guarantee a safe exit of civilians through six corridors and prepare for the evacuation of the ill and the wounded from the eastern part of Aleppo.” Both militaries are claiming they will not engage in any offensive action during the stipulated time, though each have been blamed by international investigators for the Sept. 19 attack on a UN humanitarian-aid convoy that left at least 20 dead in the hard-hit province during a previous cease-fire.