Amos calls for immediate ceasefire, safe passage for civilians trapped in Muadamiyeh

UN Humanitarian Chief Valerie Amos, "extremely worried" over growing unrest in Syria, on Saturday called for an immediate ceasefire in Muadamiyeh to allow safe passage to the civilians trapped there. Amos said she was "extremely worried" by the situation unfolding across Syria, where ordinary women, children and men are facing "horrific violence and brutality from all sides of the conflict. "I call on all parties to agree an immediate pause in hostilities in Muadamiyeh to allow humanitarian agencies unhindered access to evacuate the remaining civilians and deliver life-saving treatment and supplies in areas where fighting and shelling is ongoing," Amos said in a statement distributed by her office. It is "vital" that all parties to the conflict respect their obligations under international human rights and humanitarian laws to protect civilians and to allow neutral, impartial humanitarian organizations safe access to all people in need, wherever they are in Syria, she added. She noted that more than 3,000 people, mostly women and children, were evacuated on Sunday and the same number or more remain trapped. Those who were evacuated received immediate assistance, including food, medicines and psycho-social support from the Syrian Arab Red Crescent and UN humanitarian agencies. "How many more children, women and men will needlessly lose their lives? The humanitarian community has stressed time and time again that people must not be denied life-saving help and that the fighting has to stop," she said. She noted that UN humanitarian staff has been denied access to Muadamiyeh in Rural Damascus for months, with reports of continued shelling and fighting in the area, preventing the completion of the rescue operation. She added that thousands of families also remain trapped in other locations across Syria, for example in Nubil, Zahra, old Aleppo town, old Homs town and Hassakeh. "Civilians must be allowed to move to safer areas without the fear of attack," she stressed