BEIRUT—A broad coalition of Syrian rebels denounced international negotiations for peace as “meaningless” on Sunday, as the U.N. Security Council prepared to convene an emergency meeting about the spiraling violence in Syria.
The meeting, set for 11 a.m. Eastern time, was requested by the United States, Britain, and France, as pro-government forces extend their bombardment of the contested city of Aleppo. They are widely believed to be accompanied by Russian airstrikes.
Rebels meanwhile shelled Maysaf, a government stronghold near the central city of Hama, for the second day in a row, according to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group.
Maysaf is home to a large number of Alawites, members of President Bashar Assad’s sect. Assad has rallied Syria’s minorities behind his government behind fears of the Sunni-dominated rebellion.
The U.S., Britain, and France are aligned on the Security Council against Russia and China, which back Assad in the country’s protracted war, now in its sixth year.
The Observatory, which relies on a network of contacts inside Syria, said Sunday that 213 civilians have been killed by airstrikes and shelling on opposition areas in and around Aleppo since a U.S.-Russian brokered cease-fire collapsed Monday evening.
