BBC Online :
As many as 50,000 people have fled separate offensives against rebel forces in northern and southern Syria in recent days, activists say.
Russian air strikes reportedly killed 31 people in the Eastern Ghouta outside Damascus on Friday, after 20,000 people left the region. In the northern town of Afrin, where 30,000 people have fled, Turkish shelling killed at least 18 people. Seven years of war have driven nearly 12 million Syrians from their homes.
At least 6.1 million are internally displaced while another 5.6 million have fled abroad.
More than 400,000 are believed to have been killed or are missing, presumed dead, since the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad began in March 2011. The foreign ministers of Turkey, Russia and Iran – three countries closely involved in
the conflict – have met in the Kazakh capital Astana to prepare for a summit on Syria in Istanbul next month. Friday’s deaths in the Eastern Ghouta town of Kafr Batna were reported by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based monitoring group. Despite international calls for a ceasefire, there has been no let-up in the offensive and the Syrian army is now pushing into densely populated areas.
Residents have told BBC News there is intense street fighting between rebels and government soldiers in some parts of the enclave. Humanitarian corridors controlled by the Syrian government reportedly allowed about 4,000 more people to leave the enclave on Friday despite the fighting. The Russian defence ministry has been streaming what it says is live video of the checkpoints. According to the Observatory, nearly 20,000 civilians fled rebel-held areas in the region on Thursday. The UN children’s agency Unicef is sending representatives to assess the needs of evacuees in temporary shelters in Damascus. A Unicef spokeswoman said its current response plan could deal with up to 50,000 people. Pro-government forces are believed to have recaptured 70% of the region after three weeks of intense fighting against rebels there. The crushing of the rebel enclave outside Damascus would be a major victory for President Assad. Afrin, a town populated mainly by ethnic Kurds near the frontier, has been under bombardment from the air and the ground by Turkish forces and their local Syrian allies. Some 30,000 people have fled the city and nearby villages, according to the Observatory.
As many as 50,000 people have fled separate offensives against rebel forces in northern and southern Syria in recent days, activists say.
Russian air strikes reportedly killed 31 people in the Eastern Ghouta outside Damascus on Friday, after 20,000 people left the region. In the northern town of Afrin, where 30,000 people have fled, Turkish shelling killed at least 18 people. Seven years of war have driven nearly 12 million Syrians from their homes.
At least 6.1 million are internally displaced while another 5.6 million have fled abroad.
More than 400,000 are believed to have been killed or are missing, presumed dead, since the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad began in March 2011. The foreign ministers of Turkey, Russia and Iran – three countries closely involved in
the conflict – have met in the Kazakh capital Astana to prepare for a summit on Syria in Istanbul next month. Friday’s deaths in the Eastern Ghouta town of Kafr Batna were reported by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based monitoring group. Despite international calls for a ceasefire, there has been no let-up in the offensive and the Syrian army is now pushing into densely populated areas.
Residents have told BBC News there is intense street fighting between rebels and government soldiers in some parts of the enclave. Humanitarian corridors controlled by the Syrian government reportedly allowed about 4,000 more people to leave the enclave on Friday despite the fighting. The Russian defence ministry has been streaming what it says is live video of the checkpoints. According to the Observatory, nearly 20,000 civilians fled rebel-held areas in the region on Thursday. The UN children’s agency Unicef is sending representatives to assess the needs of evacuees in temporary shelters in Damascus. A Unicef spokeswoman said its current response plan could deal with up to 50,000 people. Pro-government forces are believed to have recaptured 70% of the region after three weeks of intense fighting against rebels there. The crushing of the rebel enclave outside Damascus would be a major victory for President Assad. Afrin, a town populated mainly by ethnic Kurds near the frontier, has been under bombardment from the air and the ground by Turkish forces and their local Syrian allies. Some 30,000 people have fled the city and nearby villages, according to the Observatory.
