The head of the United Nations observer mission to Syria has called on both sides to allow trapped civilians to leave the conflict zones.
In a statement issued on Sunday, General Robert Mood said:
“The parties must reconsider their position and allow women, children, the elderly and the injured to leave conflict zones, without any preconditions and ensure their safety,”
“This requires willingness on both sides to respect and protect the human life of the Syrian people,”
“I call on the parties to take immediate action to ease the pain of Syrians trapped in the violence and the UN Supervision Mission in Syria stands ready to monitor their release, once the decision is taken by the parties,”
Over a thousand families are currently trapped by fighting in Homs, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
Scores of civilians have been killed in recent government attacks on rebel strongholds, while the UN observer mission has suspended its activities due to the escalating violence.
