Syria conflict: Red Cross 'alarmed' over Qusair
Syrian doctor describes the worsening humanitarian situation in Qusair
The Red Cross has expressed alarm over the situation in the besieged Syrian
town of Qusair, and has appealed for immediate access to deliver aid.
Thousands of civilians are believed to be trapped in the town, which lies close
to the border with Lebanon.
The battle for control between pro-government forces and
rebel fighters has made medical supplies, food and water scarce, the Red Cross
says.
Russia has also reportedly blocked a UN "declaration of alarm" on Qusair.
The draft Security Council declaration, which was circulated
by Britain, voiced "grave concern about the situation in Qusair, and in
particular the impact on civilians of the ongoing fighting".
Council statements such as these must be agreed unanimously.
However, a diplomat said Russia blocked the draft text because the UN had
failed to speak out when Qusair was seized by rebels.Trapped civilians
An opposition activist told the BBC on Friday that around 30,000 civilians were
still in the town.
Rebel-held parts of Qusair are effectively blockaded by government forces and
Hezbollah fighters.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said in a statement it was
"alarmed" by reports of civilians trapped in Qusair and was prepared to enter
the town immediately to deliver aid.
Strategic town of Qusair
* Estimated population of 30,000 people
* Up to 10,000 people have fled to neighbouring towns and 1,500 people
are wounded, the UN says
* Some 23 villages and 12 farms west of Qusair are reportedly inhabited
by Lebanese Shia
* Near the main route from Damascus to port of Tartous, a gateway to
the heartland of President Assad's Alawite sect
* Qusair's importance
"Civilians and the wounded are at risk of paying an even heavier price as the
fighting continues," said
the head of the ICRC's operations in the region, Robert Mardini.
The UN secretary general's office also appealed to the warring parties to allow
residents to flee.
The BBC's Imogen Foulkes in Geneva says the fact that both
the UN and ICRC have issued urgent statements at the same time is an
indication of how desperate they believe the situation has become.
Fighting in Qusair intensified last month with militants from Hezbollah, the
Iranian-backed Lebanese group, joining forces loyal to
President Bashar al-Assad.
Reinforcements from the rebel Free Syrian Army are reported
to have managed to break through from the north-east to support the
embattled rebel fighters.
Some Lebanese Sunnis have also crossed into Syria to fight
alongside the rebels, who are drawn largely from Syria's majority Sunni
community.
On Saturday, influential Muslim cleric Yusuf al-Qaradawi
called on Sunni Muslims from around the Middle East to join the battle
against President Assad.
He told a rally in Doha that Iran and the Lebanese Shia group Hezbollah, Mr
Assad's main allies, wanted to exterminate Sunnis.
Activists from the UK-based pro-opposition Syrian Observatory for Human Rights
say rebels in Qusair are bracing themselves for
another assault.
Fifteen Syrian army tanks have massed north of the town, says Rami Abdel
Rahman, the observatory's director.
"Regime forces are reinforcing the sites that they have north of the city,
including Dabaa airport and Jawadiya," he said.
Qusair, which lies 10 km from the Lebanese border, is
considered a key logistical hub and supply route for weapons smuggled
into Syria.
The town is also located near the main road connecting the city of Homs to the
Syrian capital Damascus.
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