1,000 families trapped in Syrian city of Homs will be evacuated to safetyReported by Metro.co.uk on Tuesday, 19 June 2012 (on June 19, 2012)
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*More than 1,000 families trapped in the besieged Syrian city of Homs can finally be helped to safety, officials agreed yesterday.*
Casualty of war: A wounded girl is treated at a makeshift hospital in Marrat Masreen, near Idlib, as the shelling of rebel-held areas continues Picture: (Picture: Reuters/Shaam News)
Women, children and the injured are to be evacuated from the area after a week of shelling by troops loyal to president Bashar al-Assad.
The move comes after calls by Maj Gen Robert Mood, chief of the UN observer mission in the country, to ensure safe passage for civilians and protection from what activists called ‘systematic killings’.
However, foreign ministry officials blamed the failure of previous efforts on ‘armed terrorist groups’ and said citizens were being held by rebels as ‘human shields’.
Despite the announcement, shelling and clashes have continued in Homs, while soldiers backed by helicopter gunships have bombarded the town of Rastan as part of a push to wipe out pockets of resistance.
A Russian ship has also been stopped by Britain off the Scottish coast over fears it is carrying helicopters and missiles to Syria. The MV Alaed was halted after the government warned the ship’s insurers that cover for the vessel could breach an EU arms embargo.
London-based marine insurer Standard Club has now withdrawn cover from Russian owner Femco and other ships in its fleet. A Foreign Office spokesman said it was ‘doing all we can to stop the Syrian regime’s ability to slaughter civilians being reinforced through assistance from other countries’.
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