Syria: Battle for Qusair continues as world watches
On Saturday, the UN warned all sides they would be held accountable for the suffering of civilians in Qusair. Syrian troops and the rebels have been fighting for weeks to control supply routes from Lebanon through the a strategic border town.
This citizen journalism image provided by Qusair Lens shows Qusair-based activist Hadi Abdullah, (r.), walking on a street hit by the shelling of Hezbolllah Lebanese Shiite group and the Syrian forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar Assad, in the town of Qusair, near the Lebanon border, Friday.
Qusair Lens/AP
Beirut
Syrian troops and Hezbollah guerrillas besieging the border town of听听fought with rebels on Saturday as the听听warned all sides they could be held accountable for the suffering of civilians trapped there.
The Britain-based听听for Human Rights said fighting was taking place inside听听and in villages around it, largely controlled by President听's forces who have cut off access to the town.
Rebels have pleaded for military help and medical aid for the hundreds of people wounded in the onslaught by government forces, who are also fighting back fiercely around the capital听听and the south and centre of the country.
The battle for听听is happening as the听听补苍诲听听seek to overcome deep differences over听听and bring the two sides to the negotiating table for a political solution to the civil war in which 80,000 people have been killed.
The听听said Secretary-General听听was monitoring the battle for听听"with the gravest concern" and called on both sides to allow civilians to escape the town, usually home to 30,000 people.
"The eyes of the world are upon them, and... they will be held accountable for any acts of atrocity carried out against the civilian population of听," a U.N. statement said.
The Observatory, an anti-Assad network that monitors the violence in听听through medical and security sources, said at least one person was killed during fighting inside听.
Rebels also tried to attack the nearby Daba military air base, seized by the听听on Wednesday, and fought Assad's troops around Daba village.
The two-week battle for听听is aimed at securing supply routes near the Syrian-Lebanese frontier, which both sides accuse the other of using to bolster their forces inside听.
For Assad, seizing听听would also allow him to cement control of a belt of territory between the capital听听and his stronghold on the听.
The prominent role of guerrillas from听's Shi'ite group Hezbollah has angered rebels, who have threatened to take the battle into听听unless Hezbollah withdraws.
Early on Saturday at least seven rockets were fired into听's eastern Bekaa Valley from rebel-controlled Syrian territory, security sources said.
Most of the rockets landed in empty fields. No one was hurt but some buildings were hit by shrapnel.
It was the first time the area, about 35 miles east of Beirut, had been struck by rockets.
Several barrages have fallen in the northern Bekaa Valley and on Sunday two rockets were fired at the听听of southern Beirut after Hezbollah leader听听vowed his fighters would battle in听听to victory whatever the cost.听