Well, now that is quite something.

It was a painful 13 years, just watching the pain Syrians were goping through. and that would not even register on the scale of what the Syrians felt.

But they did it. Its time for them to breathe, to celebrate.

The stories and videos coming out of places like Seydnaya are horrific and I hope those freed are able to get good physical and mental health care - they will need it.

Since I have been following this conflict from the start and I used to post about it on this website, I thought I might aswell post about something good that has happened.

Recently a public debate has been stirred about whether actions preventing someone from public platforms (and therefore depriving them of the money they would have been paid) is “economic terrorism”.

The answer is no. No one has an automatic right to use a platform to spread their message. They can do so on their own, but they do not need organisations to support or pay them for it.

What is happening in Aleppo (and Syria in general) is truly shocking. Yet most Muslims do not seem to be as outraged as when Israel attacks the Palestinians or even Lebanon.

A lot of leftists you can ignore because they are more defined by their awe of Russia and anti American sentiment more than by justice or humanity.

But even Muslims are the same. I have even come across sentiment suggesting “aah well, atleast it is Muslims killing Muslims” as if that is some sort of excuse and makes it less bad.

That makes it worse – people who are meant to have the highest humanity and morality carrying out such despicable acts.

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As I right this, the time has been reached for a "cessation of hostilities" in Syria.

This is not the same as a cease fire, because, well, they wont be ceasing fire.

Some groups such as ISIS and Al Nusra will still be targeted by Assad. Previously, Assad and Russia have in the name of bombing ISIS bombed anyone but ISIS, so it will be worth noting what happens this time.

Other smaller groups may join the cessation of hostilities, or they may not depending on many things including whether they themselves are bombed and targetted.

I don't think that anyone really expects much to be accomplished here, but even an unfair cessation of hostilities is better than nothing because atleast the people will have some peace - if it works out.

Recently, the Assad forces have managed to gain an upper hand in their fight to gain control of Aleppo which has now almost been encircled. This assault has been supported by russian air strikes that have often indicriminately targeted civilians and while purportedly targetted ISIS, they have notably stuck everyone but ISIS.

Encirclement will allow the Assad regime to carry out their time tested practice of starving the place into submission or death. A detailed map of the city and who controls what is available at this link

David Cameron is seeking to extend the UK's bombing campaign of ISIS from Iraq and into Syria.

I will ignore the issues of international law (No Syria invitation, no UN mandate) for the simple reason that international law is a joke and might is often right.

The question is a simple one: should the UK bomb (ISIS in) Syria. The answer is even simpler: No.

A major argument used to support such an idea is a flawed one: By definition any individual attacking people in the UK will not be in Syria.

If that individual was in Syria, at that point in time they wouldnt be a threat to us in the UK.

The use of the attacks in Paris are just a ruse, a useful excuse to push an interventionist policy and one that should be countered.

Russia has loudly entered the Syrian conflict, declaring its war on ISIS.

ISIS, the same bogeyman the western governments want us to be terrified of while ignore the butchery committed by Bashar al Assad.

This intervention has arrived at an opportune moment with the West wavering on who and where they want to fight and Turkey being in a state of flux due to inconclusive elections in June that have left the country in a situation where we are still waiting to see who holds the balance of power.

The Russian intervention could be a game changer, or it could simply only slow the collapse of teh Assad Regime.

The one thing the Russian intervention "against ISIS" has not done, is to actually attack ISIS.