“Rebel fighters often seize aid trucks, taking some or all of the supplies, and government forces often close roads, blocking off entire towns. About half of the grassroots humanitarian aid groups in Aleppo have stopped operating amid security threats, volunteer shortages, and a lack of resources, says Lawrence, a Syrian who asked to use a fake name and works with the organization whose clothing drive was bombed………… A year after fighting erupted in Aleppo, the city and surrounding rural districts have been hit hard by shortages, violence, and crime. Fear and uncertainty are pervasive as those who remain struggle to provide for their families. With the war in a stalemate, those living in Aleppo and the province have settled into an uncomfortable routine punctuated by government attacks and have tried to go about their lives…………………. While violence and fighting in Aleppo are down compared to last summer, according to most residents, artillery, airstrikes, and clashes remain a daily part of life. And in addition to the violence between opposition and regime forces, many residents say they worry about the continued rise in criminal violence……………… The Assad government controls less than half of the city, and the remainder is under opposition control. Civilians are able to cross between both sides of the city at designated checkpoints, but crossing is dangerous. Those who cross often must pay bribes to soldiers on both sides and risk getting caught in the middle of skirmishes……………“The good FSA are at front lines, and the bad ones are among people in the neighborhood equipped with their weapons. The bad ones kidnap or steal,” he says. Throughout Syria there are now at least 1,200 different armed opposition groups, making it difficult to determine who is a legitimate fighting group and who is a criminal gang….……….….”

It is just the normal evolution of how things started in Syria. From initial spontaneous protests, a promising start to an uprising, to a movement hijacked by Islamists and Gulf Salafists and Saudi money and Al-Qaeda affiliates. Now some of them have split off into kidnappers, thieves, and blackmailers, good old-fashioned gangsters. The metamorphoses continue. Almost predictable.
Cheers
mhg