World Bulletin / News Desk

France on Thursday requested urgent closed-door consultations at the UN Security Council on the evacuation of civilians from Aleppo and plans for deliveries of aid to the Syrian city.

France is working with Germany and other EU countries to push for the deployment of observers to Aleppo to monitor the situation, as Syrian forces move to assert full control over the city, French Ambassador Francois Delattre said.

"In these very dark days in Aleppo, it is critically important to have international observers under the surveillance of the UN to oversee the situation and this is critically important," Delattre told reporters.

The meeting could take place later Thursday or Friday, he added.

A Syrian military source told AFP that 951 evacuees, including 108 wounded, were in the convoy. Most were civilians but about 200 rebel fighters were among them.

"France and Germany are working closely together on the conditions for safe evacuation and humanitarian access conditions for civilians to be able to leave safely," said Delattre.

The fall of Aleppo will hand President Bashar al-Assad his biggest victory in the nearly six-year war.

The United Nations is calling for a ceasefire, full access for humanitarian aid and a return to political negotiations to end the war.

UN Deputy Secretary-General Jan Eliasson told reporters that all sides and their international backers must ask themselves "should this hellish situation continue?"

afp