Beirut: The opposition Syrian National
Council on Tuesday urged the UN Security Council and Arab states to
take measures to end the "barbaric" attack by Syrian regime
forces on the city of Homs.
The SNC called on the "Arab League and the Security
Council to adopt procedural measures to end the barbaric
attack on Homs, and to take necessary action to protect
civilians, provide aid and treat the wounded," in a statement
released amid reports of intensified shelling of the central
city.
The umbrella group of a number of Syrian opposition
parties urged international organisations to "act speedily to
end the siege of Homs," warning that regime forces had
bolstered troops around the flashpoint city.
Forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad used tanks and
artillery against the rebel-held neighbourhood of Baba Amr on
Tuesday, he said.
The council called on residents of "all Syrian cities to
rise up against the regime in order to release some of the
pressure put on our people in Homs," the statement said.
Monitors and activists reported that security forces
blitzed Homs, killing at least 16 civilians on Tuesday.
Security forces have been laying siege to several
neighbourhoods of the city since February 4.
PTI
