Aleppo: Syrian guns pounded rebel positions in Aleppo and heavy fighting rocked the Old City amid a flurry of diplomatic activity on Wednesday, as world powers pressed on with the formidable task of seeking an end to the bloodshed.
A day after nearly 140 people were reportedly killed across Syria, the UN refugee agency said the number of civilians fleeing nearly 18 months of violence has reached more than 250,000
The plight of the refugees was also under the spotlight as Oscar-winning actress Angelina Jolie spoke to journalists at the UN-run Zaatari camp in northern Jordan, flanked by UN High Commissioner for Refugees Antonio Guterres.
“We encourage the international community to do everything they can to support these refugees, and there is much to be done,” said Jolie, a special envoy of the agency. “It has been a very heavy experience,” she said of her tour of the camp. “It is very emotional to be with people who are wondering who is on their side.”
After an eerily quiet morning, a resident reported renewed bombardments of the Kalasseh and Bustan al-Qasr districts in the south, Suleiman al-Halabi in the centre and Bustan al-Basha in the north. “There are clashes now in the Old City,” a mainly Christian area of the commercial hub, the resident told AFP.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that five people, including a child were killed, in shelling of the rebel stronghold of Sakhur, and 12 people killed altogether in Aleppo province
In the capital, meanwhile, an explosion rocked the upscale western district of Mazzeh overnight, and pro-regime gunmen fought rebels in Barzeh, another wealthy neighbourhood, the Observatory said.
Fierce clashes broke out south of the capital in Tadamun and the nearby Yarmuk Palestinian refugee camp, the watchdog said, adding that three civilians were killed in shelling of the area of Al-Hajar Al-Aswad nearby.
The watchdog gave an initial toll of at least 36 people killed nationwide on Wednesday — 33 of them civilians — after a day in which 139 lives were claimed.
International peace envoy Lakhdar Brahimi was in Cairo to meet exiled opposition leaders ahead of a planned visit to Damascus, his spokesman said. (AFP)