The mayor of eastern Aleppo, Brita Hagi Hasan, attended the European summit on Thursday 15 December to raise a cry of despair and ask all the EU heads of government to save the last survivors in Aleppo who can still escape death.
Journalists initially went to meet Hasan at Schuman Roundabout, but he could not get past the security cordon set up around the European Council. "The international community and Security Council have totally failed. I really hope all the heads of state will agree to accept me at this summit", he said.
Nearly 50,000 civilians are still blocked in the city of Aleppo. Among the 6,000 civilians who are wounded, over 800 are in a critical condition and need to be evacuated urgently. "If you don't help us, all these civilians will be the victims of a general massacre!", Hasan declared, who believes that the EU's words are no longer enough. "We're not asking Europe to enter into war – absolutely not! We're asking you to secure the corridors to evacuate our civilians, and to send observers to take note of the atrocities".
Should the EU take out sanctions against Russia? "You must first of all punish Bashar al-Assad. Russia will then no longer have any legitimacy to intervene in Syria", Hasan stated, adding that not a bullet from the Syrian army has been fired against the so-called Islamic State. The only people to have fought the terrorism are the rebels, to whom Hasan belongs. "Islamic State is the creature of the Assad regime! He is the leader of the terrorism in Syria!", Hasan stated.
European Council President Donald Tusk then met Hasan at midday on Thursday 15 December. At the request, in particular of France's President François Hollande, they then met all the heads of state at lunch, with the aim of giving a loud and clear message: "I'm not asking you to save our roads and walls. That's over. I'm not asking you to bring back the lost lives. That's over. I'm not asking you to save freedom. That's over. But I am asking you one last thing. I'm asking you again to save what's left of our lives, our women and our children, by opening up a corridor", Hasan said. (Original version in French by Thomas Régnier)