Residents fear ground attack on Syrian city of Homs

HOMS, Syria -- Residents of Homs said Wednesday the latest attack on their city is the worst in five days of shelling, and many people fear that the Syrian government's forces are preparing to launch a ground assault.

One opposition fighter said multiple rockets and tank rounds were fired at the central city Wednesday.

Several people were killed when a car bomb exploded in the Bayada neighborhood, in the northeast of the city, with Syrian television blaming the blast on "armed terrorist gangs."

The number of dead over the past 24 hours passed 50, with widespread reports saying 20 children were among those killed.

"The humanitarian state is horrible -- nothing is available," Homs resident Dana said, noting that the situation there was worsening. "No electricity, no communication, no food, no water, and the biggest problem is, I think, there is no first aid, no medicine."

She added, "The doctors are doing their best in the field hospitals. They cannot afford all the numbers of the wounded people."

Locals claimed tanks and infantry were on the move, and local TV reports said the same, prompting speculation that an all-out ground assault by President Bashar al Assad's troops is brewing.

Hundreds of people were giving blood in expectation that there will be many more casualties -- but it is not known where in the city the blood will be needed.

Outside of Baba Amr, in southwest Homs, members of the Free Syrian Army gathered to discuss an exit strategy for its leaders.

They expect the current onslaught to become much worse because of an increased presence of the much-feared militia group Shabiha.

Shabiha fighters are used by Assad to do the dirty work the military will not do -- infiltrate an area, be it Sunni or Shiite, and then attack it, stoking sectarian animosity.

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