Fierce gun battles and loud explosions could once again be heard and seen in the Syrian city of Homs as heavy artillery shelling continued to strike buildings in the Jouret al-Shayah neighborhood.
Local broadcasters show videos in which loud explosions – as well as heavy gunfire – could be heard. A series of large explosions peppered the skyline as shells appeared to strike buildings, AP reported.
The opposition blames government forces for the latest onslaught, though the authenticity of the footage cannot be verified.
The reported escalation of violence comes a day after UN observers attempted to visit the conflict torn city.
The head of UN monitors in Syria, Norwegian Major General Robert Mood, told reporters that the violence in Syria had reached an “unprecedented level,” adding that this obstructed their ability to “observe, verify, report as well as assist in local dialogue”.
His comments come ahead of a UN decision on the future of the mission as the United Nations Supervision Mission in Syria’s (UNSMIS) three months-mandate ends on July 20. UNSMIS is expected to meet"over the next days and weeks" make a decision on their activity in the region.
Mood did not rule out that the mission may stay.
“So it is time to stop spreading ourselves out too thin and restructure in a way that will allow us, once we resume our activities, to conduct targeted tasks that require longer periods of stay in particular areas," he said.
Anti-government forces claim at least 25 civilians have died across Syria on Tuesday, with the Syrian National Council claiming up to 800 people have been killed over past week.
The group also estimates the overall toll of the conflict at 14,000 people.
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