Newly-appointed UN chief says ending Syria war "biggest challenge"

PanARMENIAN.Net - The newly-appointed Secretary General of the United Nations, has said it breaks his heart to see the suffering of the Syrian people. Former Portuguese prime minister Antonio Guterres will replace Ban Ki-moon who steps down on December 31 after ten years as UN chief, RTE said.

Speaking after his formal appointment by the UN General Assembly, Guterres said that ending the civil war in Syria would be his biggest challenge.

He said the world's major conflicts were linked to Syria and that global leaders should understand there was a shared interest in ending the war there.

Meanwhile, Syrian president Bashar al-Assad said the Syrian army's capture of Aleppo, which has come under renewed bombardment in an effort to seize its rebel-held sector, would be "a very important springboard" to pushing "terrorists" back to Turkey.

Rescue workers said that Syria's military backed by Russian warplanes had killed more than 150 people in eastern Aleppo this week, in support of its offensive against the city.

Rising casualties in Aleppo, where many buildings have been reduced to rubble or are lacking roofs or walls, have prompted an international outcry and a renewed diplomatic push, with talks between the United States and Russia planned for tomorrow.