Syria: Army renews Homs shelling amid pressure on Assad

There is growing pressure on the government in Damascus to give access to civilians trapped by the onslaught.

The UN Secretary General says he wants to send his humanitarian chief to Syria to negotiate access to the city.

Dozens of people were killed in Syria on Wednesday, including journalists Marie Colvin and Remi Ochlik.

Their deaths brought further condemnation of the Syrian government, which has rejected responsibility for the killings, BBC News reports.

'Terrifying explosions'

On Thursday, rockets, artillery and mortar rounds pounded the opposition stronghold of Baba Amr, Inshaat and Khalidiya, activists said.

Activist Hadi Abdullah told AFP that he could hear "terrifying explosions".

The French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe said a ceasefire was "imperative" to enable food and medical supplies to be brought into Homs, which has been under siege since 4 February.

The city is one of the focal points of the uprising against the government of President Bashar al-Assad.

The UK's Foreign Secretary William Hague said the international community will be looking at further ways to apply pressure to Mr Assad.

"It is a deeply frustrating situation that people have been dying in their thousands... that the Assad regime has continued to act seemingly with impunity - but I think we can agree to a wider set of measures across a large group of nations," Mr Hague said.

The European Union sanctions on Syria could be tightened further, Mr Hague added

Details also at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-17138512