- Title: SYRIA: Extensive fighting destroys Damascus neighbourhood
- Date: 9th August 2012
- Summary: MORE DESTRUCTION AND RUBBLE IN AL-QABOUN SEEN FROM MOVING VEHICLE. A VOICE CAN BE HEARD SAYING IN ARABIC: ''Look at the man trying to salvage the remains of his factory, they destroyed the entire factory..'' THREE MEN WALKING DOWN A STREET WITH DAMAGED AND BURNT HOUSES INTERIOR OF BADLY DAMAGED BUILDING. A VOICE CAN BE HEARD SAYING IN ARABIC: ''They started bombarding and
- Embargoed: 24th August 2012 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Syrian Arab Republic
- Country: Syria
- Topics: Conflict,Politics
- Reuters ID: LVA269O8CFA4SQ6IW6Z3K66IT7OF
- Story Text: The Damascus neighbourhood of al-Qaboun shows extensive destruction after three weeks of fighting between rebels and Syrian army forces.
The Damascus neighbourhood of al-Qaboun has sustained extensive damage due to three weeks of fighting between rebels and Syrian army forces, amateur video obtained by Reuters showed on Tuesday (August 7).
Large areas of al-Qaboun were seen to be covered in rubble.
The Free Syrian Army says that government artillery and helicopter gunships have destroyed many houses and businesses.
Heavy fighting in al-Qaboun began in mid-July but ended with the Syrian army regaining control of rebel strongholds in Damascus.
Assad has focused his fierce army counter-offensive on Syria's two main cities, reasserting control over much of Damascus before taking the fight to the northern commercial hub of Aleppo.
Streets in al-Qaboun were seen to have many burnt out cars and heavily damaged buildings.
A voice can be heard saying over video "this is where the latest battle took place two weeks ago....they hit them from the air.''
''They started by bombarding us from the air at night and the next day they bombarded us with artillery. I was here alone, my husband was away. I have two children and I was also pregnant. We ran away to another area called Masaken, to a farm there. They also bombed us there. They would bomb us as we were breaking fast and at night. I had to give birth to my daughter in the middle of the street. She is six days old,'' said a woman holding her baby.
Residents of al-Qaboun can also be seen carrying food staples marked with the logos of Red Crescent and the World Food Programme (WFP).
Nearby are fresh graves of people killed during the recent fighting.
One grave carried the name of Khaled Al-Ahmad al-Haboul with the word ''martyr'' inscribed.
Damascus and Tehran accuse Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Western nations of stoking violence by backing Syrian rebels.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a British-based opposition watchdog, said more than 60 people had been killed across Syria on Thursday (August 8). It put Wednesday's (August 7) death toll at 170, including 33 civilians in Aleppo.
Syrian rebels said they had regained control over parts of a strategic district of Aleppo on Thursday after countering a sustained assault by President Bashar al-Assad's forces seeking to retake Syria's biggest city.
The violence in Syria has forced tens of thousands of people to flee into neighbouring countries, and about 2,400 refugees, including two generals, arrived in Turkey on Tuesday night.
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