UN humanitarian chief visits Baba Amr area

DAMASCUS - Visiting UN humanitarian chief Valerie Amos entered Syria's battle-scarred district Baba Amr Wednesday after obtaining the country's promise to cooperate with the UN mission in Syria.

The UN under-secretary general for humanitarian affairs, who arrived in Syria late Tuesday, made an "assessment visit" to the rebellious Homs neighborhood along with representatives of the Syrian Red Crescent.

"The visit was for assessing the situation there and we didn't distribute aid in Baba Amr today," Khalid Ariksusi, head of the operation section in the Red Crescent, told reporters.

He said the district of Baba Amr, a main stronghold of the opposition against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, was "still largely abandoned by its residents," who fled after armed confrontations between Assad's military forces and rebels.

Meanwhile, Saleh Dabbakeh, spokesman of the International Committee of the Red Cross in Syria, told Xinhua Wednesday that Red Cross and Red Crescent teams had entered the Abil town in Homs for the second time to distribute relief aid to around 450 families from Baba Amr.

Amos, who was prevented from entering Syria last Wednesday, is on a three-day UN mission to meet with Syrian officials and discuss the humanitarian situation in the conflict-wracked country.

She also came to persuade the Syrian authorities to grant unhindered humanitarian access to the country's battered cities, mainly in the central province of Homs.

Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem met with the UN envoy Wednesday, reiterating that Syria would adhere to its commitment to cooperate with the UN delegation, as long as it "respects Syria's sovereignty and independence."

The Syrian top diplomat stressed that his country is making serious efforts to provide foodstuffs and medical treatment to all citizens despite rounds of economic sanctions from Western countries.

He also called Arab and Western sanctions against Syria "outrageous" for targeting the Syrian people themselves.

In another UN effort to end the country's months-long violence, Kofi Annan, former UN secretary-general, was appointed as the joint envoy of the UN and the Arab League in late February.

He was expected to fly to the capital city of Damascus Saturday after an Arab conference over the Syrian issue in Egypt.

Li Huaxin, China's special envoy to Syria, called for efforts of both the Syrian government and the opposition to cease all violent acts and resolve the country's crisis through political dialogues and peaceful negotiations.

During his two-day visit, Li said China is willing to work with the international community and play a positive and constructive role in peacefully solving the country's violence, which the UN estimated has claimed more than 7,500 lives since it broke out in March 2011.

On Sunday, the Chinese Foreign Ministry issued a six-point statement, reiterating China's objective and fair stance that the Syrian issue should be determined by the Syrians themselves.

Baba Amr has emerged as the epicenter of armed clashes between the president's loyalists and the rebels, among them army defectors.

Activists claimed the former rebel-held district has been under the government troops' bombardment for more than a month, which has killed hundreds of people.

However, the Syrian government said it was fighting against armed terrorist groups and al-Qaida members, who have reportedly infiltrated Syria and are fighting alongside the opposition.