More civilians killed in eastern Ghouta despite UN imposed ceasefire

Syrian regime forces have killed at least 23 civilians in ongoing attacks in eastern Ghouta, the Syrian Civil Defence said Friday.

Violence has been tempered in the enclave since Russia on Tuesday began daily pauses in fighting -- but air strikes continue to claim lives and a total ceasefire across Syria demanded by the UN has not come into effect.

The Syrian Civil Defence said Bashar al Assad regime's ground and air attacks occurred despite decisions to implement a ceasefire made separately by Russia and the UN.

The number of casualties in eastern Ghouta since February 19 has reached at least 700.

The UN Security Council last Saturday adopted a resolution calling for a 30-day ceasefire in Syria without delay.

Eastern Ghouta's 400,000 residents have lived under regime siege since 2013, facing severe food and medicine shortages even before the latest offensive.

As dozens of aid trucks remained unable to enter the enclave, the UN Human Rights Council postponed voting on a British resolution condemning the crisis in eastern Ghouta, after member states failed to agree on a final text.

Pressure on Damascus

The recent onslaught has shocked the international community and left medical staff in eastern Ghouta struggling to cope.

On Friday, the United States, Germany and France upped the pressure on Damascus as last weekend's UN Security Council vote for a ceasefire has failed to stop fighting.

US President Donald Trump and German Chancellor Angela Merkel agreed in a phone call that the Syrian regime must be held accountable.

"This applies both to the Assad regime's deployment of chemical weapons and for its attacks against civilians and the blockade of humanitarian support," a German chancellery statement said.

In the past eight months, forces of the regime have intensified their siege of eastern Ghouta, making it nearly impossible for food or medicine to get into the district and leaving thousands of patients in need of treatment.