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The violence yesterday coincided with the departure from the country of UN monitors, whose mandate expired and was not renewed due to deteriorating conditions that have dragged Syria into civil war.
The head of the UN mission, Babacar Gaye, was expected to leave yesterday. Some monitors left on Wednesday and more are expected to follow the team leader.
Government forces fired mortar rounds from the Qasioun mountain overlooking Damascus, activists said.
The southern suburbs echoed with the sound of gun battles between the army and rebels who have been struggling to topple President Bashar al-Assad for more than 17 months.
“For about an hour we heard explosions and gunfire. It is not as bad as yesterday yet but tensions are really high. I think you could probably hear the echo of shelling or clashes from most parts of
Damascus,” opposition activist Samir al-Shami said via Skype.
He and other activists said the bombardment and fighting seemed to be concentrated on southern districts of Damascus, where rebels have been able to slip in from rebellious suburbs.
Assad’s forces stormed the south-eastern district of Kafr Souseh early yesterday and were making arrests, another activist said.
Hundreds of residents have been displaced due to fighting in Damascus, and many have taken shelter in mosques and schools in calmer areas.
But some of those displaced are being asked to leave their places of refuge, said an activist who gave his name only as Tareq, of the Revolution Leadership Council of Damascus.
“Assad’s regime warned people staying in schools they have to evacuate within a few days. They are saying it is because they have to prepare for the coming school year,” he said.
“Thousands of displaced are worried because they have a lack of alternatives for a place to stay.”
At least 40 people were killed on Wednesday in the shelling, which was accompanied by attacks from helicopters, and in ensuing ground raids on the Kfar Souseh, Daraya, Qadam and Nahr Aisha neighbourhoods, residents said.
In towns across Syria, the suffering of war does not end with the shelling, as food and medicine shortages get worse.
At last count the UN said it knew of170 000 refugees, but many more are unregistered. A school near the outskirts of Aleppo has become home to more than 500 people who have fled the fighting.
Valerie Amos, UN emergency relief co-ordinator, appealed on Wednesday for more funds to help a million people in need.
The plea followed a visit to the country by Amos, who is also the UN undersecretary-general for humanitarian affairs. She said that most of the money raised so far had gone on food aid but there are other concerns.
“One is that we have the possibility of a major health impact in the country,” Amos said.
“Syria, as you may know, produces most of its medicines in factories in Aleppo and elsewhere. They have now come under the impact of the fighting, so crucial life-saving medicines are no longer available.”
The Security Council organised a ministerial meeting in New York for 30 August, when the last UN observers are due to leave, after the council acknowledged that international efforts to significantly reduce the violence and end the Syrian government’s use of heavy weapons have failed.
Meanhile, leaders of France, Britain and the United States have held phone conversations to discuss how to provide further support for Syria’s opposition, which is fighting an increasingly fierce war with government forces.
A statement by the White House on Wednesday said a phone call between President Barack Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameron covered a “wide array of global issues”, including the conflict in Syria and the need for increased participation from other countries to support the Syrian opposition.
The two leaders exchanged views on “ways the international community can assist those displaced by the conflict, apply pressure on the Assad regime, and support the opposition so that the legitimate aspirations of the Syrian people can be realised”, the statement said.
Meanwhile, a statement from Cameron’s office said the two leaders agreed that the use or threat of use of chemical weapons by Syria was “completely unacceptable” and would force them to “revisit their approach” to the conflict. — Al Jazeera.
Bongani Ndlovu