Slaughter in Aleppo is 'demonic' and 'evil', says Archbishop of Canterbury

The slaughter being mercilessly inflicted on the Syrian people in Aleppo is "evil" and an "absolute contempt for the human spirit," the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby has said.

It is not just the death and devastation which has caused a frustrated Archbishop to speak out, but also the failure of diplomatic efforts to tackle the situation.

Asked if there is evil at work in Aleppo, he told ITV News: "What is being done is evil both in the strict theological sense and in the general sense.

"It is demonic. It's the absolute contempt for the human spirit. For the dignity of the human being.

"It's the brushing aside of the poor and the weak and the fragile in a way that is as bad as anything we've seen in the last century.

"It compares with some of the great atrocities of the last century and there have been terrible atrocities."

Syria's embattled northern city of Aleppo has been pounded by Syrian and Russian planes since the collapse of a US-Russia brokered ceasefire two weeks ago.

A stepped-up offensive by Syrian pro-government forces is attacking the city from the south in a bid to penetrate opposition-controlled areas, where the UN estimates 275,000 people are trapped in a government siege.

The Archbishop told ITV News: "What is happening in Syria and bits of Iraq is so unspeakable, so appalling, particularly Aleppo at the moment. It's more than frustrating.

"We always have the sense if only someone did X it would change things but of course no one knows what X is.

"I think when you see the breakdown in diplomatic relations over the last few days, the cessation of talks between the Russians and Americans, you realise that this is not because the people doing those talks are hopeless or namby-pamby, it's because they've run in to a brick wall."