Hundreds go missing in war-torn Aleppo: OHCHR

The United Nations' human rights office warned Friday that hundreds of men who had fled rebel-held districts of Aleppo to reach western areas under government control have reportedly disappeared amid reports that opposition groups present in the Syrian city are also abducting civilians.

"While it is difficult to establish the facts in such a fluid and dangerous situation, we have received very worrying allegations that hundreds of men have gone missing after crossing into government-controlled areas," OHCHR said in a statement.

"Family members say they lost contact with the men, between the ages of 30 and 50, after they fled opposition-controlled areas of Aleppo around a week or 10 days ago," it added.

In rebel-held districts of east Aleppo, both Fatah al-Sham Front (formerly al-Nusra Front) and the Abu Amara Battalion are alleged to have abducted and killed an unknown number of civilians who requested armed groups to leave their neighbourhoods to spare civilian lives.

"We have also received reports that between 30 November and 1 December, armed opposition groups fired on civilians attempting to leave in the Bustan al-Qasr area towards government-controlled Msharqa," the human rights office added.

Once Syria's commercial hub, Aleppo has been divided in two since 2012, with western parts under Syrian government control and eastern districts held by rebels seeking to oust Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

A military operation launched by Damascus on Nov. 24 broke the deadlock however, with Syrian government troops seizing some 75 percent of eastern Aleppo.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported last Friday that ensuing fighting had resulted in the displacement of 31,500 civilians.

With frontlines changing on a daily basis, some 100,000 people are reportedly crammed in an enclave only 25 percent the size of the area previously controlled by opposition groups.

"Civilians are caught between warring parties that appear to be operating in flagrant violation of international humanitarian law," OHCHR warned.

"Indiscriminate attacks, with little effort taken to avoid civilian casualties, have been conducted on heavily populated areas on both sides of the city," it added. Enditem