Civilian | featured news

A Syrian rebel army chief urged the world Tuesday to protect civilians in Syria, as a group of embattled rebel fighters tried to hold onto a once-relaxed Syrian hill resort that has become a hub of revolt against President Bashar Assad's rule.

Tens of thousands of demonstrators take to the streets outside Damascus, in Homs and elsewhere in response to the lethal military assaults centered in the besieged city of Hama. The growing civilian toll intensifies international condemnation of the Syrian regime.

Syrian tanks and helicopters opened fire and killed at least two civilians as the military advanced through a series of villages in northwestern Syria on Thursday, a push that sent residents running for the hills, several villagers said in phone calls with CNN.

Syrian military forces are poised to enter another northern town, while an increasing number of civilians are fleeing to Turkey to escape the military crackdown on anti-government protesters.

Afghan officials said Sunday that a NATO airstrike killed 14 civilians, all of them women and children, in the southern province of Helmand on Saturday night. Local officials said the strike was aimed at Taliban fighters and missed. NATO said it was investigating.

NATO's leader confidently proclaimed on Sunday that Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi's days are numbered, but he couldn't foresee how long the alliance's grinding mission to protect besieged civilians will last.

France and Britain said NATO should be doing more to pressure the Libyan regime. French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe said the alliance should be firing on the weapons being used by Gadhafi’s troops to target civilians in Misrata.

Nato says forces loyal to Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi are using human shields in the war-torn town of Misrata. The coalition says Col Gaddafi's troops are using civilian vehicles and hiding their heavy armour in civilian areas.

The coalition has told the rebels that they are no less subject to bombardment by NATO planes than pro-Qaddafi forces if they endanger civilians.

The attack on the boys amounted to one of the worst cases of mistaken killings of children by foreign-led forces in the Afghanistan war.