18 premature babies die in Syrian hospital

Asia Bulletin (IANS) Wednesday 8th February, 2012

Eighteen premature babies in incubators were said to have died after their hospital was hit by electricity cuts in turbulent Syrian city of Homs, the BBC reported Wednesday.

State TV, however, denied the reports and said Homs hospitals were operating normally.

According to some local residents, Homs city came under renewed bombardment, the heaviest so far, on the fifth day Wednesday.

Rockets and mortars were raining down on Homs for a fifth consecutive day Wednesday with at least 100 civilians killed in what has become the bloodiest 24 hours yet, the Daily Mail reported citing the report.

President Bashar Al-Assad continued his crackdown against anti-regime opposition -- with activists saying security forces killed three innocent families in their homes.

The attacks came despite Assad promising Russia to put an end to the violence. On Sunday, Russia and China had saved Damascus from UN Security Council action with their veto.

They followed British Prime Minister David Cameron's approval Tuesday of plans designed to force Assad to quit and prompting China to say Foreign Minister William Hague's criticism of Beijing's veto was "extremely irresponsible".

Pro-Assad militiamen shot dead at least 20 civilians in Homs when they stormed their homes on the outskirts of opposition areas overnight. The unarmed victims were a family of five, one of seven and one of eight, the report said.