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29 March 2024

Red Cross says still seeking to enter Syria flashpoint

Published
By AFP

The International Committee of the Red Cross said Monday it is still awaiting permission from the Syrian authorities to enter Baba Amr, the rebellious district of Homs overrun last week by regime forces.

"Negotiations are still ongoing," ICRC spokesman Saleh Dabbakeh told AFP.

Rebel fighters fled the neighbourhood on Thursday in the face of a ground assault by regime forces following a month-long shelling blitz which the US-based Human Rights Watch said had killed some 700 people.

A seven-truck aid convoy has been waiting since Friday to enter Baba Amr which fleeing residents say is facing an acute humanitarian crisis.

The authorities say the relief agencies are being barred for their own safety due to the presence of bombs and landmines.

But Syrian anti-regime activists say the authorities are keeping the groups out in order to buy time to hide their "crimes."

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has demanded unconditional humanitarian access to Syrian cities, saying there were "grisly" reports of summary executions and torture in Homs, Syria's third largest city in the centre of the country.

The ICRC said it had delivered relief supplies on Sunday in a village close to Baba Amr to refugees who had fled the neighbourhood.

Syrian state television said its journalists have been in Baba Amr for days and have reported that the area has been "sanitised" of "armed terrorist groups."

The Damascus regime blames the unrest that has shaken the country for almost a year on "armed terrorist groups" it says are sponsored by unnamed foreign powers.