Trapped locals in pathetic state -- UN

Trapped locals in pathetic state -- UN
PRESS TRUST OF INDIA

UNITED NATIONS, JAN 19: With international aid supplies drying up, civilians trapped in the Chechen capital Grozny are facing hard times and their condition is worsening by the day, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has said.

All escape routes from Grozny seem to be closed and only few people can make their way out, a UNHCR spokesman said expressing concern over the worsening situation. Russian troops are reported to have reached the centre of Grozny after months of fierce fighting that has killed thousands on both sides.The situation on the border between Chechnya and neighbouring Ingushetia continued to be somewhat confusing, he said.

While initial restrictions on movement of males between 10 and 60 years have been lifted by Russian forces to allow civilians to flee, body searches were still continuing. The 23rd UNHCR relief convoy arrived in Ingushetia's capital, Nazran, on Tuesday with shoes, warm clothing and beds, a donation from the Danish refugee council.

Meanwhile, evenas Russia stepped up its campaign to take control of Grozny, Western leaders say Russia is using disproportionate force in the campaign and the assault on Grozny endangers between 10,000 and 40,000 civilians trapped in the city's cellars with little food. Russian officials have made an effort to present their case by escorting a delegation of the council of Europe to nearby regions to meet locals who back the military campaign.

On Tuesday, in the remote mountain town of Botlikh, east of Chechnya, a delegation's helicopter was met by an angry crowd which said Western officials had overlooked their suffering when Chechen-led Islamic rebels launched a raid there in August.

"All your humanitarian concern is directed toward the Chechens. Where is your sympathy for those boys dying in the fight against the bandits?," Dagestani villager Abusualyan Alikgibirov said. Lord Frank Judd, who will report on the Delegation's findings, told the villagers the council of Europe "would carefully document all we have seenand heard".