Civilians to be ‘evacuated’ from beseiged Syrian city

The United Nations has welcomed reports that an agreement has reached to allow the evacuation of civilians from the besieged Syrian city of Homs and for aid to be delivered, a UN spokesman said.

The United Nations made clear that it was not a party to the deal and while it was ready to send in aid, it did not yet have the go-ahead from the government and opposition sides in Syria’s war to move on the reported agreement.

"The United Nations and humanitarian partners had pre-positioned food, medical and other basic supplies on the outskirts of Homs ready for immediate delivery as soon as the green light was given by the parties for safe passage," UN spokesman Farhan Haq said in a statement.

Syria earlier said it reached a deal to allow "innocent" civilians to leave the rebel-held old city of Homs, potentially the first positive result after deadlocked peace talks in Switzerland last week.

The government's announcement came hours after rebels declared a new offensive in the northern province of Aleppo, in response to an escalated air assault by government forces trying to recapture territory and drive residents out of opposition-held areas.

President Bashar al-Assad’s forces have used siege tactics to surround and try to starve out rebels holding strategic areas, a technique increasingly copied by rebels as well.

The siege of the old city of Homs has gone on for over a year, and activists say 2,500 people are trapped inside the area struggling with hunger and malnourishment. They represent only a small fraction of besieged Syrians across the country in desperate need of aid.

“The agreement will allow innocent civilians surrounded in the neighbourhoods of Old Homs - among them women and children, the wounded and the elderly - an opportunity to leave as soon as the necessary arrangements, in addition to offering them humanitarian aid,” said a Syrian foreign ministry statement, cited on Syria TV.

“It will also allow in aid to civilians who choose to stay inside the old city.”

Reuters