Aleppo could be ‘one of the biggest massacres of civilians since Second World War’
The forces of tyrant Bashar al-Assad are relentlessly pushing into rebel-held areas
THE desperate situation in Aleppo could lead to "one of the biggest massacres of a civilian population since World War Two", a top French official has claimed.
Tens of thousands of people have fled Aleppo as pro-government Syrian forces press on with their brutal campaign to reclaim the divided city.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group said today more than 50,000 out of an estimated quarter-million inhabitants have been displaced by attacks on rebel-held eastern Aleppo over the past four days.
French UN ambassador, Francois Delattre, made the dire warning, adding: "France and its partners cannot remain silent."
Forces loyal to Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad - backed by their Russian allies - have captured the largest rebel-held district of war-ravaged Aleppo.
The operation is a major breakthrough for pro-government troops, who have been accused of carrying out deliberate and indiscriminate attacks on civilians, torture and other war crimes.
Syrian rebels will not withdraw from eastern Aleppo, a rebel official said on Wednesday, indicating they plan to fight on against an intense assault by government forces that seized control of swathes of the opposition-held area in recent days.
"A withdrawal by the factions is rejected," Zakaria Malahifji, head of the political office of the Aleppo-based Fastaqim rebel group told Reuters, speaking from Turkey.
"This is the decision of the factions. I spoke to them about everything that was tabled and they said they would not withdraw, and other things may also happen," he said, without giving further details.
Moscow says it is not involved in the Aleppo offensive, but a Russian defence ministry spokesman said Syrian government forces had seized "nearly half the territory occupied by rebels in east Aleppo in recent years".
"The careful and long-planned operations by the Syrian army have radically changed the situation over the past 24 hours," said General Igor Konashenkov.
Masaken Hanano was the first district the rebels, who have also been accused of human rights abuses, took in the summer of 2012 in a move that divided Aleppo into an eastern area held by the insurgents and a western district controlled by government forces.
Since then, more than 250,000 civilians have been trapped under government siege for months in the rebel-held east - facing starvation and shortages of fuel and medicine.
The capture of Masaken Hanano in northeastern Aleppo is part of a major government offensive that could isolate that part of the city from rebel-held areas in the south.
Meanwhile, concern is mounting for the safety of a seven year-old Bana Alabed who tweeted in the weekend that her home had been bombed.
Since November 15, regime bombardment of eastern Aleppo has killed 212 civilians, including 27 children, according to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
The escalation has terrified residents, and several families have fled to areas in southeastern Aleppo which have been relatively calm.
Damascus says east Aleppo residents and surrendering fighters are free to leave, but accuses the rebels of using civilians as "human shields".
The United Nations has a plan to deliver aid to Aleppo and evacuate the sick and wounded, which rebel factions have approved but which Damascus has yet to agree. Guarantees are also needed from regime ally Russia.