Russia sends missile system to Syria port

The announcement came after Washington said it was suspending talks with Moscow aimed at reviving a ceasefire deal over Russia’s support for the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. On the ground, Assad’s forces advanced on rebels during intense street fighting in the opposition-held east of Aleppo city, which Russia has been accused of bombing indiscriminately including targeting its hospitals. The UN rights chief called for action to halt the ‘ghastly avalanche of violence’ unfolding in Syria’s second city, which is reeling from some of the most brutal fighting in the conflict. Russia, which has denied its strikes have hit hospitals, said it was deploying an S-300 missile system to Tartus on the Mediterranean coast. “The S-300 is a purely defensive system and poses no threat to anyone,” said defence ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov. “It’s not clear why the placement of S-300 in Syria has caused such a stir among our western colleagues,” he said in a statement. As well as operating a naval facility in Tartus, Russia runs an air base outside the Syrian coastal city of Latakia, which currently houses warplanes used in its  bombing campaign in support of ally Assad. Washington announced late Monday that it would suspend joint efforts to reinstate a nationwide truce, accusing Moscow of abetting Assad’s assault on Aleppo.