Satellite Images Of Aleppo, Syria, Reveal Shocking Destruction Of City (PICTURES)

Images Lay Bare Destruction Of Syria's Largest City

New images have laid bare the destruction caused by the Syrian civil war in the country's largest city.

Satellite images from human rights organisation Amnesty International show scenes of "devastation" in Aleppo - which has been the arena for much fighting between those loyal to president Bashar Assad's regime and rebels seeking to oust it.

The stark "before and after" bird's eye photos show entire blocks of houses turned to rubble and "widespread" damage in ancient Aleppo - a world heritage site.

The pictures show the impact of ballistic missile strikes in February on three neighbourhoods. Amnesty said that the attacks killed more than 160 residents and injured hundreds.

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Analysts said the images have also found a "proliferation" of road blocks in the city.

Amnesty International said the images show "massive human rights violations against the civilian population".

Donatella Rovera, the organisation's senior crisis response adviser, who has recently returned from a visit to the city, said: "Aleppo has been utterly devastated, its people fleeing the conflagration in huge numbers.

"The risk cited one year ago regarding the devastating consequences of turning what was Syria's most populous city into a battlefield has become reality.

"Aleppo has been utterly devastated, many of its residents fleeing the bombardments in huge numbers and many others trapped in a city under fire and under siege in desperate humanitarian conditions."

Christoph Koettl, emergency response manager at Amnesty International USA, added: "The grave violations of international law in Aleppo and elsewhere in Syria are a direct consequence of the international community's paralysis and delay in effectively condemning these crimes, and referring the situation to the world's criminal court of last resort.

"The images are a snapshot of a population under brutal siege as Amnesty's researcher on the ground has revealed over time."

A spokesman said that six million Syrians from across the country have been forced to flee from their homes as a result of the fighting.

In July, the United Nations said that more than 100,000 have been killed since the conflict started two and a half years ago.

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