Aid workers are poised to enter the contested city of Homs to
evacuate civilians trapped and wounded by fighting between the Syrian
army and rebels.

Both sides have agreed to a temporary truce according to the
International Committee of the Red Cross whose teams are still waiting
to enter.

Conditions in heavily bombarded Homs are becoming increasingly desperate.



“We don’t have anything to eat or drink,” said one elderly woman,
standing among ruins. “They destroyed our home. I am asking God to hit
you as you hit us,” she added, referring to President Assad.

As activists reported dozens more deaths nationwide, a UN monitoring mission remains suspended amid the worsening bloodshed.



US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, meanwhile, is preparing to
meet her Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov on a visit to Saint
Petersburg next week.

Washington and Moscow have widely differing views on the Syrian conflict and have struggled to find common ground.