UN raises alarm as 20,000 civilians flee Aleppo assault by government forces
East Aleppo has been under government siege for more than four months, with international aid stocks exhausted and food supplies running low
The Syrian government offensive to recapture rebel-held parts of Aleppo sparked international alarm on Tuesday, with the Red Cross saying nearly 20,000 people had fled the assault in two days.
Diplomats said the UN Security Council would hold an emergency meeting by Wednesday on the humanitarian crisis in the city, where the army has captured a third of opposition-controlled east Aleppo in recent days.
The fighting has prompted an exodus of terrified civilians, many fleeing empty-handed into remaining rebel-held territory, or crossing into government-controlled west Aleppo or Kurdish districts.
With so many people trapped in an ever shrinking space, children can be little more than sitting targets for bombs
Up to 20,000 people have fled the regime offensive in the past 48 hours, the International Committee of the Red Cross said.
ICRC spokeswoman Krista Armstrong said the figure was an estimate and the situation remained fluid as “people are fleeing in different directions”.
East Aleppo has been under government siege for more than four months, with international aid stocks exhausted and food supplies running low.
World Food Programme spokeswoman Bettina Luescher said civilians were enduring a “slow motion descent into hell”.
Government forces have advanced swiftly in their two-week operation, capturing all of the city’s northeast in a major blow to the opposition. The loss of their east Aleppo stronghold would be the worst defeat for rebels since Syria’s conflict erupted more than five years ago.
