The International Committee of the Red Cross
(ICRC) called on Wednesday (February 21) for humanitarian access to Syria
’s Eastern Ghouta, especially to reach wounded people in critical need of treatment.
Speaking to Reuters, the ICRC Spokeswoman Iolanda Jaquemey, said, “We are calling for restraint, sparing civilians, and we are calling for immediate humanitarian access. You have currently people dying simply because they have no access to health care, injured people dying, and this is urgent for humanitarian organizations such as ourselves, to be able to save their lives. And the moment is now, it is not tomorrow.”
At least 38 people died on Wednesday. At least 310 people have been killed in the besieged area since Sunday night and more than 1,550 injured.
Eastern Ghouta, a densely populated agricultural district on the Damascus outskirts, is the last major area near the capital still under rebel control.
Home to 400,000 people, it has been besieged by regime militias for years.
A massive escalation in bombardment, including rocket fire, shelling, air strikes and helicopter-dropped barrel bombs, since Sunday has become one of the deadliest of the Assad war on Syrians, now entering its eighth year.
Medical charity Medecins Sans Frontieres said on Wednesday 13 hospitals had been hit and damaged or destroyed in the past three days.
Source: Orient news