UN humanitarian chief enters besieged Syrian area

DAMASCUS, Syria -- A Syrian Red Crescent official says the U.N. humanitarian chief has entered the shattered district of Baba Amr in the central city of Homs.

The official Valerie Homs is expected to give the first outside assessment of the conditions there.

The government had sealed off Baba Amr since regime forces captured the neighborhood last Thursday following a deadly, monthlong siege. Activists accuse the government of using the time to try to cover up evidence of atrocities by the regime.

Khaled Erq Sousi, head of the emergency committee of the Syrian Red Crescent, told The Associated Press that Amos entered Baba Amr on Wednesday.