Syrian Ceasefire Crumbles as Aid Workers Injured

The violence could derail delivery of aid to starved civilians

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Anadolu Agency / Getty Images

Syrians being helped by Syrian Red Crescent workers upon their arrival in regime-held areas of the Syrian city of Homs, on February 7,2014.

A ceasefire designed to bring relief to Syrian civilians trapped in the besieged city of Homs was broken Saturday, as state media reported four humanitarian aid workers were injured by gunfire between rebels and government forces.

Over eighty children, women and elderly people were evacuated as part of the ceasefire termsĀ from the rebel-held city Friday, where 3,000 civilians have been living with little besides weeds and leaves to eat for many months, the BBC reports.

But deliveries of food and medical supplies were slowed by mortar fire early Saturday. It is unclear whether the violence is a temporary setback or puts the whole agreement in jeopardy. If aid is able to continue, more civilians will be evacuated from Homs, where almost daily bombardments have killed thousands and reduced entire neighborhoods to rubble.

Opposition groups and the government each accused the other of violating the ceasefire, which U.N. officials had hoped would be a milestone in the resolution of the bloody, three-year civil war.

[BBC]