Qatar issues special postage stamp 'in solidarity with Aleppo'

Qatar's Postal Service has issued special stamps in solidarity with the people of Syria's war-ravaged Aleppo.

"The stamps aim to reflect the suffering of the city's people from destruction and hunger," Q-Post said in a statement carried by state-run news agency QNA.

"The design of stamps built on the images of destruction, murder and hunger that children and families in Aleppo are suffering from," it added.

The statement added that the new issue was to pay tribute and raise awareness regarding developments of the Syrian crisis and to encourage the public to donate to alleviate the suffering.

Last week, Syrian troops retook control of eastern Aleppo, which had been held by disparate rebel groups since mid-2012, after a devastating month-long offensive that caused tens of thousands of people to flee their homes. 

More than 465 civilians have died in east Aleppo during the assault and another 142 have been killed by rebel rocket fire on government-held areas, according to a toll released on 15 December by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group.

Much of the city has been reduced to a wasteland by air and artillery attacks.

A shocking new map created from satellite imagery obtained by the UN's Operational Satellite Applications Programme revealed last week that more than 33,000 homes have been destroyed in Aleppo since the bloody civil war began.

Qatar has provided support to rebel groups during Syria's five-year conflict and houses a Syrian opposition "embassy" in Doha.

Earlier this month, Qatar's Emir called off the Gulf state's National Day celebrations in solidarity with the people of Aleppo.

The decision by Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani came "in solidarity with our people in the city of Aleppo, who are subjected to the worst kind of repression and torture, displacement and genocide", said a statement carried on QNA.

Nizar al-Haraki, ambassador of the Syrian opposition coalition in Doha, told AFP at the time that the decision to cancel the celebrations was "a dignified humanitarian gesture and a strong and positive message of solidarity".