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Syrian Army Steps Up Homs Offensive
(Washington Post) Loveday Morris - Fewer than 1,000 people, the vast majority of whom are fighters, remain in the last rebel-held areas of Homs. A series of events in recent weeks helped clear the way for a military offensive by pro-Assad forces. An explosion wiped out a number of rebel leaders. Then a Dutch priest who had refused to leave the opposition areas was assassinated. With their spirits beaten down, hundreds of rebels have accepted government offers to hand over their weapons, activists and Syrian state media said. At least 300 fighters have left in the past month, according to three activists in the city, and one put the number at nearer 1,000. Virtually no civilians remain.