- Syrian forces say they have captured the Khaldiyeh district of Homs, a rebel stronghold since the war began
- But Syrian Observatory for Human Rights say there is still scattered fighting in southern areas of the neighborhood
- Syrian TV aired footage of troops roaming deserted streets and waving flags in front of shell-scarred buildings
By
Matt Blake
|
House after house, block after block it is a scene of the most appalling devastation.
Not
one building has escaped the onslaught of countless mortars, bombs and
bullets in Syria’s savage civil war. The only signs of life in Homs are
out-of-control weeds. Syria’s third largest city – and the home of
650,000 people before tens of thousands fled or were killed – now looks
as if it has been blasted back to the Stone Age.
The
picture shows the city’s strategic Khalidiya district which troops
loyal to president Bashar al-Assad have just retaken after weeks of
fierce fighting with rebels.
The
counter-offensive, which also saw the government make gains around the
capital Damascus, was supported by Lebanese Hezbollah guerrillas.
At
least 100,000 people have been killed in the Syrian conflict, which
started with peaceful protests against Assad’s rule in March 2011.
Nearly two million refugees have fled.
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Destroyed: The sounds of busy traffic, bustling
markets and children playing in the streets have been replaced by the
roar of fighter jets, exploding bombs and gunfire
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory
for Human Rights activist group, however, denied that regime forces had
seized all of the district of Khaldiyeh, saying there was still
scattered fighting in southern areas of the neighborhood.
Syrian
TV aired footage from the neighborhood, showing troops roaming deserted
streets and waving flags in front of shell-scarred buildings. Two
opposition activists in the area who could normally be contacted via
Skype were offline Monday.
Government troops launched a
sweeping offensive to retake rebel-held areas of Homs, Syria's
third-largest city, a month ago. Even if small pockets of resistance
remain, the fall of Khaldiyeh to regime troops appeared to be a foregone
conclusion, and its capture would be the second major setback to rebels
in central Syria in as many months.
Shells of houses: The Khaled bin Walid Mosque is
scarred and pockmarked from shrapnel spat into the city by the daily
explosions that hit the city. Beyond the mosque, the shells of buildings
and homes give the city the look of a post-apocalyptic wasteland
Tragic: The once glorious Khalid Ibn al-Walid
Mosque in the heavily disputed northern neighborhood of Khaldiyeh, Homs,
lies in ruins after being hit by shells during the long bombardment of
the city
Bruised and battered: From the outside, the Khalid Ibn al-Walid Mosque looks little better
In
early June, regime forces captured the strategic town of Qusair in Homs
province near the border with Lebanon. Troops have also captured the
town of Talkalakh, another border town in the province.
The
province of Homs is Syria's largest, and runs from the Lebanese
frontier in the west all the way to the border with Iraq and Jordan in
the east. The city of Homs holds strategic value because it serves as a
crossroads: the main highway from Damascus to the north as well as the
coastal region, which is a stronghold of President Bashar Assad's
Alawite sect, runs through Homs.
Khaldiyeh
had a population of about 80,000 but only some 2,000 remain there today
as residents fled the violence, activists say. The heavy fighting over
the past two years has caused extensive damage, with some buildings
reduced to rubble.
Ghost town: Many of the roads in Homs are
completely empty giving this once great city the look and feel of a
ghost town, populated only by the thousands of souls who died here
Poignant: An empty chair sits among the shells
of buildings is a haunting reminder of the life that used to fill the
streets of Homs. They are now empty and desolate
In a report on Monday, Syrian state TV said 'the Syrian army has restored security and stability in the whole neighborhood of Khaldiyeh in Homs.'
A
Syrian TV reporter embedded with troops in the area gave a live report
standing in front of damaged buildings. He interviewed an army officer
who said the troops fought a tough battle against rebels who mined
buildings and fought from underground tunnels.
'As
of this morning, our armed forces in cooperation with the
(pro-government paramilitary) National Defense Forces have taken control
of Khaldiyeh and are now cleansing the neighborhood,' said the officer,
surrounded by about a dozen soldiers and plainclothes security agents.
No respite: Syrian youths inspect the site of a car bomb explosion at a roundabout on the outskirts of Homs
'The fate of terrorists will be under our feet,' he said, claiming that all Homs will be soon 'cleansed' of rebels.
The
Observatory has said that troops are backed by members of Lebanon's
Hezbollah group. Hezbollah, which did not acknowledge whether its
members are fighting in Khaldiyeh, played a major role in a battle last
month in Qusair, outside Homs, and lost scores of men there.
Observatory
director Rami Abdul-Rahman said government troops have captured most of
the neighborhood apart from some fighting on its southern areas.
Another
opposition activist, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the
sensitivity of the matter, said the battle in Khaldiyeh 'is almost
over.' He acknowledged that troops are almost in full control of the
area.
Fire and smoke: Smoke and flames rise in the Khalidiyah neighbourhood of Homs after an attack by Syrian forces
Patrol: Syrian government forces patrol in the
Khalidiyah neighbourhood of Homs. They claim to have broken the rebel
resistance in the area
Still fighting: Syrian soldiers fire their weapons as fighting continued to rage in pockets of the city
Trundling on: A government tank patrols the neighbourhood under a shroud of smoke
Victory? Syrian soldiers pose for a photo while
holding the Syrian flag in al-Khalidyya neighborhood which they claim to
have secured
In the northern city of Aleppo,
several rebel factions including the al-Qaida-linked Jabhat al-Nusra, or
Nusra Front, attacked army posts in two neighborhoods in a an offensive
titled 'amputating infidels' the Observatory said.
It
said rebels captured several buildings in the neighborhoods of Dahret
Abed Rabbo and Lairamoun, and that eight government soldiers were
killed.
Rebels have been on
the offensive in Aleppo province and captured last week the strategic
town of Khan el-Assal. Activists and state media said score of troops
were killed there after their capture. The Western-backed Syrian
National Council condemned the killings.
In
the southern region of Quneitra, on the edge of the Israeli-occupied
Golan Heights, government troops captured the town of Mashara on Sunday
night after intense fighting, the Observatory said.
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