16,000 flee Aleppo homes after ‘chilling’ Assad onslaught

Syrians walk over rubble of damaged buildings as they flee clashes between government forces and rebels in eastern Aleppo
REUTERS

Around 16,000 people have fled their homes after Syrian dictator Bashar Assad’s forces, backed by Russian air strikes, seized several districts of war-ravaged Aleppo, a UN humanitarian chief said today.

Former Tory MP Stephen O’Brien added that thousands more were likely to try to escape the heavy aerial bombardments and ground attacks.

He said the situation in the divided Syrian city was “deeply alarming and chilling” with fleeing civilians heading into uncertain and precarious situations.

His warning came as the Russian defence ministry said the Syrian army had made a “breakthrough” in Aleppo in the last 24 hours, according to the Interfax news agency.

Many of the civilians fleeing besieged enclaves headed to government and Kurdish-controlled areas while others were driven deeper into the remaining rebel-held districts.

French foreign affairs minister Jean-Marc Ayrault called for an immediate UN Security Council meeting to discuss the crisis.

“More than ever before, we need to urgently put in place means to end the hostilities and to allow humanitarian aid to get through unhindered,” he said.

EU foreign ministers were set to discuss Aleppo with Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov on the sidelines of a meeting in Minsk today.

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