Syria opposition condemns Ghouta 'bloodbath'

Syria`s main opposition group on Tuesday condemned a government offensive in Eastern Ghouta as a "bloodbath" and a "war crime", saying it may pull out of UN-backed peace talks in protest.

Three days of air strikes, rockets and artillery fire have left nearly 200 civilians dead in the rebel-held enclave near Damascus, with 13 children killed on Tuesday morning alone, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

Nasr al-Hariri, president of the Syrian Negotiation Commission (SNC) said it was clear the Damascus government had "zero interest to engage" in dialogue.

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"The Syrian regime with the direct support of Russia and Iran have turned Ghouta into a bloodbath of innocent women and children," Hariri told reporters in Brussels after talks with EU officials.

"What`s happening in Ghouta is a war crime. International law is very clear on the matter but in Syria the implementation of international law doesn`t exist."

The European Union, which is hosting a conference on Syria in Brussels next month, says the near seven-year war can only be resolved through negotiations.

Brussels wants to see fresh impetus for UN-led talks in Geneva, which have made scant progress in eight rounds.

Hariri said the Syrian opposition had done its best to make progress in talks, but when asked if he would consider withdrawing in protest at the latest violence, he warned: "We are studying all the options".

"Just see what they are doing in Ghouta. We are therefore studying the feasibility of the current process as we seek to end the suffering of our people," he added.

The United Nations has warned the situation in Ghouta is "spiralling out of control" and has repeatedly called for a month-long ceasefire across Syria`s front lines, from Eastern Ghouta to the Kurdish enclave of Afrin in the northwest, which Turkey threatened on Tuesday to lay siege to in the coming days.