Syrian rebels flee enclave in Homs

BEIRUT – Syrian forces overran a longtime rebel enclave in the battleground city of Homs, the government said Thursday, as the United Nations Security Council called on Syrian authorities to allow “immediate” humanitarian access to conflict-ridden areas of the country.

The occupation of Homs’ Baba Amr neighborhood is an important victory for the Syrian military, though rebels continue to battle government forces in other parts of Homs and elsewhere in the country.

The Security Council statement deploring “the rapidly deteriorating humanitarian situation” in parts of Syria was especially significant because it was agreed to by superpowers Russia and China, which had jointly vetoed earlier draft U.N. resolutions condemning the Bashar Assad government.

On Thursday, Syrian insurgents who had occupied Baba Amr said they had decided to “strategically withdraw” from the district “for the sake of civilians remaining inside,” according to a Facebook message from Homs-based fighters of the Free Syrian Army, a loosely organized rebel umbrella group.

The rebel statement estimated that about 4,000 civilians remained in the battered, debris-strewn neighborhood, which has endured weeks of shelling and firefights and on Thursday was blanketed in snow.

Several hundred armed rebels were believed to have occupied Baba Amr, which achieved international attention as an opposition holdout against Syrian government forces.

The departing fighters warned authorities against retaliating against civilians and called on the International Red Cross to enter the district, which has reportedly lacked water, electricity and regular supplies of food.

Opposition activists reported at least 23 killed Thursday in Homs. The number could not be independently verified because access to Syria is restricted.

The official Syrian-Arab News Agency said the Syrian army had “cleansed” Baba Amr of “the foreign-backed armed groups of terrorists.” The government agency also said that the bodies of two slain Western journalists had been recovered and were to be transferred to a Damascus hospital for forensic analysis.

The revolt against the Assad government has evolved from a protest movement to an armed rebellion that has seen parts of Homs and other cities, towns and rural areas fall into rebel hands. But, as the case of Homs demonstrates, the Syrian military still maintains a substantial firepower advantage over the guerrillas, who are mostly armed with AK-47 rifles.

On Thursday, the main Syrian opposition group, the Syrian National Council, said it was setting up a military “bureau” to coordinate armed opposition to the government. The council’s Paris-based president, Burhan Ghalioun, told reporters that any arms headed to the rebels should be channeled through the council.