This article is from the archive of our partner .
The UN observer mission in Syria began its work in the country Monday, but according to accounts on the ground, the envoy is looking at a war zone, not a ceasefire.
Today, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon called on the Syrian government to provide the observers with full access to "freely move to any places where they will be able to observe this cessation of violence," reports Zein Karam at the Associated Press. Though Ban called the current ceasefire "very fragile," video footage and first-hand accounts reveal that depiction to be a rather severe euphemism.
The most striking example of this is in the rebel stronghold of Homs, where Syrian forces are continuing a shelling and shooting campaign against opposition forces. "Tarek Badrakhan, an activist from the battered and almost deserted Homs district of al-Khalidiya, said the Syrian government had resumed its intense bombardment of the neighborhood early on Monday for the third consecutive day," reports Al Jazeera. "The shelling hasn't stopped for one minute since this morning. There are buildings on fire right now,'' said Badrakhan. The network features vivid images of mortal shells ripping through buildings in the city.