This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-26131742

The article has changed 8 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 3 Version 4
Syria conflict: Hopes for more evacuations from Homs Syria conflict: UN concerned over Homs detentions
(about 4 hours later)
Aid organisations in Syria are hoping to evacuate more civilians from Homs after a ceasefire in the Old City was extended by a further three days. UN aid agencies have expressed concern about the safety of scores of men and boys detained by the Syrian authorities after being evacuated from Homs.
Some 450 left on Monday. The city has been under siege for 18 months. More than 300 male evacuees have been held for screening after leaving the Old City under an agreed ceasefire.
More than 1,100 people have been able to leave since Friday under a truce agreed by the local governor and the UN. Talal Barazi, governor of Homs, says 111 men have been questioned and released, while 190 others are still being held.
Meanwhile, talks between the government and the opposition are set to continue in Geneva. More than 1,100 people have fled the city since Friday under a truce.
International mediators in Geneva will try to negotiate greater access for humanitarian aid in Syria - as well as an end to the ongoing violence. Aid organisations in Syria are hoping to evacuate more civilians on Tuesday after the ceasefire was extended by three days.
The first round of talks ended last month with no firm agreements and both sides trading insults. The UN human rights office says it is "deeply concerned" that boys and men were seized as they left the besieged area.
The second round opened on Monday with separate meetings between UN envoy Lakhdar Brahim and the two sides. "It is essential that they do not come to any harm," said Rupert Colville, spokesman for the UN commissioner for Human Rights.
The delegations are again meeting face-to-face on Tuesday, although discussions will still go through the UN mediator. "We will continue to press for their proper treatment according to the international humanitarian and human rights law."
Melissa Fleming, spokeswoman for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), said detainees were being held at an abandoned school.
"We are monitoring the situation. We are definitely taking account of the number there and who is there," she said.
Meanwhile, face-to-face negotiations between Syrian government and opposition delegations in Geneva have been adjourned for the day.
A second round of peace talks began on Monday with separate meetings between UN envoy Lakhdar Brahimi and the two sides.
The first round ended last month with no firm agreements and both sides trading insults.
The opposition wants the government to commit in writing to the 2012 Geneva Communique, which called for the formation of a transitional administration with full executive authority.The opposition wants the government to commit in writing to the 2012 Geneva Communique, which called for the formation of a transitional administration with full executive authority.
President Bashar al-Assad's government has ruled out any transfer of power.President Bashar al-Assad's government has ruled out any transfer of power.
On the ground, efforts are continuing to evacuate hundreds more women, children and elderly people from Homs, amid mortar fire and shooting. 'Destitution'
On the ground, efforts are continuing to evacuate hundreds more women, children and elderly people from Homs, which has been under siege for 18 months.
More than 450 civilians left on Monday, amid mortar fire and shooting.
The BBC's Lyse Doucet, who is in Homs, said it was not expected that so many young men would try to leave.
So their fate is being scrutinised very closely, our correspondent adds.
She was at a press conference on Tuesday where the Homs governor gave the latest figures on how many detainees had been released.
He said he expected around 80% of those held would be let free.
Matthew Hollingworth, Syria director for the UN's World Food Programme, told the BBC "the floodgates have opened" as many more people try to leave.Matthew Hollingworth, Syria director for the UN's World Food Programme, told the BBC "the floodgates have opened" as many more people try to leave.
"The levels of destitution inside the Old City are like nothing I've ever seen before," he said."The levels of destitution inside the Old City are like nothing I've ever seen before," he said.
"People are living in tunnels underground, moving between shells of buildings to find roots to eat - there has been little food for many, many months now.""People are living in tunnels underground, moving between shells of buildings to find roots to eat - there has been little food for many, many months now."
TraumatisedTraumatised
UN aid chief Valerie Amos welcomed the extension of a three-day truce on Monday.UN aid chief Valerie Amos welcomed the extension of a three-day truce on Monday.
But she also confirmed that 11 people were killed after the relief operation was "deliberately targeted". It is unclear who was responsible for the attack.But she also confirmed that 11 people were killed after the relief operation was "deliberately targeted". It is unclear who was responsible for the attack.
She said that many of those who had left the city so far appeared traumatised and weak after enduring many months of siege, under bombardment and with little food or medical care. She said that many of those who had left the city so far appeared traumatised and weak after enduring many months of siege.
The Syrian Red Crescent confirmed the latest evacuation figures on Twitter.
Syria's civil conflict has claimed more than 100,000 lives since 2011 and has driven 9.5 million people from their homes.
Although the situation in Homs was discussed during the first round of talks in Geneva, the truce was actually agreed between Homs governor Talal Barazi and the UN resident co-ordinator in Syria.
Writing in the UK's Independent newspaper, British Foreign Secretary William Hague warned that the Srebrenica massacre of 1995 - when more than 8,000 men and boys were killed in a Bosnian town - could be repeated in the Old City of Homs.Writing in the UK's Independent newspaper, British Foreign Secretary William Hague warned that the Srebrenica massacre of 1995 - when more than 8,000 men and boys were killed in a Bosnian town - could be repeated in the Old City of Homs.
He said it was time to "turn up the heat" on the Syrian government to demand "full and unimpeded humanitarian access" to areas of the country in desperate need. He said it was time to "turn up the heat" on the Syrian government.
However, Russia and China failed to attend a meeting in New York to discuss a new UN Security Council resolution calling for greater access for humanitarian aid on Monday.However, Russia and China failed to attend a meeting in New York to discuss a new UN Security Council resolution calling for greater access for humanitarian aid on Monday.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has dismissed the draft resolution as one-sided and "detached from reality", according to Interfax news agency.Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has dismissed the draft resolution as one-sided and "detached from reality", according to Interfax news agency.
The Syrian government has acknowledged that some of those evacuated from Homs on Sunday were detained after they left. Syria's civil conflict has claimed more than 100,000 lives since 2011 and has driven 9.5 million people from their homes.
A Syrian information ministry spokesman told the BBC that 103 "militants" had been detained for security checks, but had since been released.
But other reports suggest the men have not been freed.