Syria army launches assault on besieged Homs

Syria's army launched a major ground assault on the central city of Homs on Tuesday, state television said, with troops entering rebel-held districts under government siege for nearly two years.

"The Syrian army and the (pro-regime militia) National Defense Forces (NDF) have achieved key successes in the Old City of Homs," Syrian state television said, adding that troops were advancing in several besieged neighborhoods in the area.

An activist on the ground and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights NGO both confirmed the report.

"They have entered into one (besieged) area, Wadi al-Sayeh, which lies between Juret al-Shiyah and the Old City," said Abu Bilal, an activist trapped inside the blockade, who spoke to Agence France Presse via the Internet.

"This is the first time the regime has entered the besieged areas since it took Khaldiyeh" in summer 2013, he added.

Activist Abu Fehmi, also trapped in the siege, said the army was "bombing very, very intensely".

"They are bombing using all kinds of weapons," he told AFP via the Internet.

Britain-based Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman said the army's entry into the besieged areas comes a day into a major escalation by the army.

"The military operation began yesterday after NDF forces were deployed to strengthen the regime troops' presence," Abdel Rahman told AFP.

"The army managed to take control of a handful of buildings," he said, adding that "they do not have military significance."