UNITED NATIONS, Dec 3: UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Monday he was "alarmed" by the escalation of violence in Syria and called for an immediate end to fighting that his organization says has displaced nearly 50,000 people.
"All parties must do their utmost to protect civilians and civilian objects, including by allowing safe passage to civilians who are fleeing hostilities," Guterres's spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in a statement.
"Syrians have endured the conflict for nearly 14 years. They deserve a political horizon that will deliver a peaceful future, not more bloodshed," he added.
Syria has been at war since President Bashar al-Assad cracked down on pro-democracy protests in 2011, with subsequent fighting that has involved foreign powers and jihadists leaving an estimated half a million people dead.
The conflict had been mostly dormant, with Assad back in control of much of the country until last week, when a rebel alliance led by Islamist armed groups began its offensive.
Syria's military and its ally Russia have responded with deadly air raids on areas under rebel control.
The fighting has killed more than 457 people, including at least 72 civilians, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
As of November 30, more than 48,500 people had been displaced in Idlib and northern Aleppo, more than half of them children, the UN's humanitarian agency OCHA said on Monday, adding that the situation was highly fluid. —AFP
