Assad's forces withdraw from Khalidiya over firece shelling by FSA

 Assad's forces withdraw from parts of al-Khalidiya neighborhood under fierce shelling of rebels

Syrian Activists denied claims of the Assad troops of achieving progress in the al-Khalidiya neighborhood in the western city of Homs.

''The regime army backed by Hezbollah militia had advanced in limited parts of the neighborhood but the fierce shelling of the free Syrian Army force them to withdraw,'' the activists reported.

The regime-run Media said that Assad's troops carried out mop-up operations in al-Qusuour, al-Qarabis and Jouret al-Shiyah neighborhoods,''killing a number of militants and destroying their weapons and equipment,'' while Field leader told Zaman Alwasl that the clashes in al-Khalidiya, killing more than 20 of the Assad forces and dozens wounded.

In relevant context, Syria is the world’s most dangerous country in the year 2013, The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime reported.

Bashar al-Assad’s crackdown on protests and since then the riots escalated into a war between the regime forces and rebels.

More than 100,000 people have been killed since the Syria crisis started in March 2011, and four million have been internally displaced, while nearly two million have fled to neighboring countries, according to the United Nations, as largely peaceful protests against Assad's rule. It escalated into a civil war after opposition supporters took up arms to fight a brutal government crackdown on dissent.