AMMAN: Syrian fighter jets bombarded suburbs of eastern Damascustoday, continuing the air raids launched on Sunni Muslim neighbourhoods in the capital since a UN-brokered ceasefire was supposed to begin two days ago, opposition activists said.
There were large explosions and huge plumes of smoke as Russian-made warplanes hit the adjacent suburbs of Zamalka, Irbin, Harasta and Zamalka, they said.
A statement by the Harasta Media Office, an activists’ organisation, said electricity, water and communications had been cut and dozens of wounded at the Harasta National Hospital had been moved as the bombardment closed in.
Activists also reported fighting in the suburb of Douma to the northeast, where Free Syrian Army fighters have been attacking roadblocks
Damascus is ringed by Sunni districts that have played a major role in the 19-month-old revolt against President Bashar al-Assad.
Assad is a member of the minority Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shi’ite Islam that has dominated majority-Sunni Syria since the 1960s, when Alawite officers assumed control of a military junta that had taken power in a coup.
International peace envoy Lakhdar Brahimi called for a ceasefire that began on paper on Friday, the first day of the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha, hoping to build momentum to end a conflict in which an estimated 32,000 people have been killed.
Syrian army on Saturday had accused rebels of committing increasing violations of a failed truce proposed for the Muslim Eid al-Adha holiday and vowed to fight back.
“For the second day, terrorist groups continued to flagrantly violate the ceasefire announced and respected by the army command,” the military said in a statement on state television. “The army will continue to track this increase of violations… and fight back against these criminal acts.”
Foreign ministry spokesman Jihad Maqdisi said the army was committed to the truce, blaming rebels for provoking a response. “The Syrian government is still completely committed to stopping military operations,” Maqdisi said. The Syrian authorities have informed the UN Security Council of truce violations, he said. “We have documented the violations and sent messages to the UN Security Council,” said Maqdisi. (Agencies)