Damascus - New York: Europe and Arabs - Agencies
The United Nations Commission of Inquiry on Syria warned that "the brutality of the past years must not be repeated, otherwise Syria will be pushed into a new path of atrocities" amid the escalation of hostilities since November 27, which threatens to spread to new parts of the country, according to the UN daily news bulletin. This came as the Syrian Armed Forces confirmed their presence on the outskirts of Hama city and in advanced directions in fortified defensive points, and working to retake a number of sites and towns in the Hama countryside, which were entered by terrorist organizations.
According to Syrian TV, today, Wednesday, army units continue their operations against the sites and axes of terrorist organizations' movements in the northern Hama countryside, and are able to expand the scope in front of the city by about 20 km after eliminating a number of terrorists and destroying their vehicles.
Syrian TV also reported that army units are engaging in violent clashes with various weapons with terrorist organizations on the Zain al-Abidin Mountain axis, northeast of Hama, and the northwestern countryside axis. According to media reports in Cairo, quoting the Middle East News Agency, he explained that the number of terrorists killed exceeded 1,600 during the current week, from the Al-Nusra Front and its organizations, by the fire of the Syrian army and the Syrian-Russian air force. For his part, the UN Special Envoy to Syria, Geir Pedersen, said that the situation in Syria is currently volatile and extremely dangerous, warning that if there is no de-escalation and rapid movement towards a serious political process, including the Syrian parties and the main international players, there are fears that the crisis will worsen, and that Syria will be exposed to a serious risk of further division, deterioration and destruction. While the UN Resident Coordinator and Humanitarian Coordinator in Syria, Adam Abdelmoula, said that what Syria is currently witnessing is the largest escalation of hostilities since 2019, calling on all parties to the conflict to prioritize the protection of civilians and civilian infrastructure.