AMMAN: Syrian forces thrust into the rebellious city of Homs on Wednesday, killing dozens of civilians by the accounts of opposition activists, and Turkey appeared to be preparing a new push against President Bashar al-Assad.
Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan, who on Tuesday said he was making ready an initiative uniting those Western, Arab and other states which have called for Ankara’s former ally Assad to step down, was due to speak to Russia’s president, whose government has angered many by blocking a move against Assad at the UN.
Moscow’s foreign minister, however, having visited Assad in Damascus on Tuesday, made clear Russia was still opposed to any peace talks that were conditional on Assad first stepping aside.
A newspaper close to the Erdogan government said Turkey planned to organise a conference with Arab and Western governments in Istanbul, part of a broader initiative that may be outlined later on Wednesday. A NATO member and rising Muslim power in the region, Ankara is sheltering Syrian rebel army commanders and has spoken of creating safe havens for refugees.
As the diplomatic gears turned, the military offensive in Homs and elsewhere showed no sign of let up, while activists in the city also accused militiamen of slaughtering three families in their homes – the sort of incident that is fueling fears of a descent into more widespread, Iraq-style sectarian killing.
The day’s total death toll stood at 67, activists said.
The onslaught on Homs, one of the bloodiest of the 11-month-old revolt against Assad, has not relented despite a promise to end the bloodshed that the Syrian leader gave to Russia, which saved Damascus from UN Security Council action on Saturday. In the latest assault on Homs, troops fired rockets and mortars while tanks entered the Inshaat neighbourhood and moved closer to Bab Amro, the district hardest hit by bombardments that have killed at least 150 people in the last two days, activists in the city and opposition sources said.
‘Electricity returned briefly and we were able to contact various neighbourhoods because activists there managed to recharge their phones. We counted 47 killed since midnight,’ activist Mohammad Hassan said by satellite phone.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said countries with influence over the Syrian opposition should press them to enter a dialogue with Assad, comments that made clear Moscow had no immediate intention of abandoning its long-time ally.
Lavrov was speaking in Moscow a day after he met Assad in Damascus, where he said both nations wanted to revive an Arab League monitoring effort that was suspended due to violence. (UNI)