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Red Cross says it 'can't cope' with Syria emergency Red Cross says it 'can't cope' with Syria emergency
(35 minutes later)
The Red Cross has said it "can't cope" with the worsening situation in Syria.The Red Cross has said it "can't cope" with the worsening situation in Syria.
"The humanitarian situation is getting worse despite the scope of the operation increasing," said Peter Maurer, president of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC)."The humanitarian situation is getting worse despite the scope of the operation increasing," said Peter Maurer, president of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).
There are currently "a lot of blank spots" with regard to people's needs, Mr Maurer added.There are currently "a lot of blank spots" with regard to people's needs, Mr Maurer added.
He said the conflict was causing more casualties and making it difficult for the ICRC to reach victims. Meanwhile Syrian opposition groups meeting in Qatar are set to discuss uniting under a new leadership body.
The ICRC admission comes as opposition groups from Syria, meeting in Qatar, are set to discuss uniting under a new leadership body. Mr Maurer said the conflict was causing more casualties and making it difficult for the ICRC - the only international aid agency to have had a presence inside Syria since the start of the conflict - to reach victims.
Mr Maurer said an unknown number of people were not getting access to the aid they needed. He said an unknown number of people were not getting access to the aid they needed.
The ICRC has not able to get to certain parts of the country, he added, giving as an example the city of Aleppo, which has been badly hit by violence in recent months.The ICRC has not able to get to certain parts of the country, he added, giving as an example the city of Aleppo, which has been badly hit by violence in recent months.
Its personnel were able to access some districts of the flashpoint city of Homs last week. Its personnel were able to access some districts of the flashpoint city of Homs last week, which Mr Maurer said was a major success.
The constantly moving nature of the conflict meant the Red Cross could not plan but instead had to seize opportunities for aid delivery on a day-to-day basis, Mr Maurer said.
His comments come a day before UN diplomats and aid agencies are due discuss the issue of access to Syria at a meeting in Geneva.
On Wednesday, a Syrian medical group claimed that up to 95% of foreign medical aid supplies were being diverted into the hands of government forces - a claim that that the ICRC says is so far unsubstantiated, the BBC's Imogen Foulkes in Geneva reports.
Strong pressure
The meeting of Syrian opposition groups on Thursday is set to bring together leaders of the Syrian National Council, hitherto the main opposition group, with other Syrian opposition elements.
The meeting will take place under the auspices of the Arab League, with western powers from the international Friends of Syria group also taking part.
The key objective is to produce a unified, credible opposition leadership firmly rooted inside Syria itself, which would then be recognised by the Friends of Syria as the sole legitimate representative of the Syrians, the BBC's Jim Muir reports from Doha.
Few expect that to be achieved in one day of talks, so the meeting could be the beginning of a longer process. However, there is strong pressure to produce swift results, he adds.