Syria war: John Kerry urges planes to be grounded

THE United States Secretary of State has called for all planes to be grounded in key areas of Syria to save the truce there, following an attack on an aid convoy.
In a blistering speech at the United Nations, John Kerry said the future of Syria was “hanging by a thread”.
He said Monday’s attack, which killed 20 civilians, had raised profound doubt over whether Russia and the Syrian government would live up to terms of the ceasefire deal.
Moscow has denied being involved, BBC revealed.
The Russian defence ministry now says a US drone was in the area where the aid convoy was struck.
Gen Igor Konashenkov said of the drone: “It can hit targets on the ground.”
He added that “we aren’t jumping to conclusions”.
His comments follow Mr Kerry’s declaration that Russia should stand up and take responsibility for making a “mistake”, criticising Russia’s defence ministry for changing its story.
Monday’s attack prompted the UN to suspend all aid convoys in Syria.
Mr Kerry said flights should stop “in order to de-escalate the situation and give a chance for humanitarian assistance to flow unimpeded”.
The attack had “dealt a heavy blow to our efforts to bring peace to Syria,” he said.
The Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has called for a thorough and impartial investigation into the attack.
A further attack on Tuesday night killed five medical workers for an international aid agency.
A partial truce brokered by the US and Russia lasted just a week.
Heavy air raids have continued in Syria, especially in and around Aleppo.
Syria’s five-year civil war has left more than 250,000 people dead and displaced more than 11 million others.