Intense shelling and clashes between Government forces and supporting militias and anti-Government armed groups have reportedly resulted in hundreds of civilian deaths and injuries in and around Qusayr, a town near the Lebanese border. Hundreds of families are said to have fled the area over the last month as efforts to capture the town have intensified.

During an urgent debate held in Geneva, the 47-member Council adopted a resolution in which it called on the Syria authorities “to meet their responsibility to protect the Syrian population and to put an immediate end to all attacks against the civilians of Al Qusayr.”

The text, adopted by a vote of 36 in favour to 1 against (Venezuela) with 8 abstentions, also condemned the intervention of foreign combatants fighting on behalf of the Syrian regime in Qusayr, and voiced deep concern that their involvement poses a “serious threat” to regional stability.

Addressing the Council prior to the adoption of the measure, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay said that the situation in Syria reflects a “colossal failure” to protect civilians.

“Day after day, children, women and men suffer the brutality of unbridled violence and gross human rights violations by all parties,” she stated. “The increasing number of foreign fighters crossing Syria’s borders to support one side or the other is further fuelling the sectarian violence, and the situation is beginning to show worrying signs of destabilizing the region as a whole.”

Since March 2011, fighting between the Syrian Government and opposition forces seeking to oust President Bashar Al-Assad has killed more than 70,000 people, and left 6.8 million people in need. In addition, the UN estimates that some 1.5 million Syrians have fled their country to escape conflict.

“The conflict in Syria is spinning out of control,” warned Ms. Pillay, who called for immediate action to stop further bloodshed and suffering. “The solution must be political. It will not be military,” she added.

In the run-up to the proposed international conference on Syria to be held next month in Geneva, Ms. Pillay called on “States with influence to pull the parties back from the brink of catastrophe.”

Speaking to reporters in New York, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said that “active talks” are under way regarding the proposed Geneva conference. However, there are still many decisions that need to be made, including agreement on a date for the meeting, as well as agreement among the opposition as to their representation.

While he was not in a position to announce when the meeting will take place, Mr. Ban declared: “we are committed to [convening] it.”

Regarding reports that the Lebanese group Hizbollah had stepped up its activities in Syria, he said that the UN is very much concerned that other actors have entered the fighting. He strongly urged all fighting to stop immediately so that a political process could begin.

Ban said he had been urging all parties with influence – on both sides – to call for an end to the fighting.

“Providing arms to either side will not help: there is no military solution [and] the only sustainable resolution will be through political means,” he said, adding that he had “taken note” of the European Union’s decision to lift its arms embargo in Syria.

Ban also reiterated his call for a political solution in a message to the consultative meeting on Syria that was held today in Tehran. “Syria is disintegrating before our eyes. The chaos is creating fertile ground for radicalism and increasingly threatens regional stability,” he said in the message, which was delivered by the UN Resident Coordinator in Iran, Gary Lewis.

Ban noted the efforts by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and United States Secretary of State John Kerry to bring the Syrian parties to the negotiating table. “These talks are the best opportunity we have had in nearly a year for a negotiated solution. The challenges ahead are formidable but we cannot afford to miss this opportunity.”

“Clashes between rival neighbourhoods in Tripoli continue, and this has affected the pace of registration from our newly established centre in the city,” a spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Adrian Edwards, told a media briefing in Geneva.

“The registration centre was open until yesterday with reduced staff as about half of them live in areas affected by shooting. Today, however, we’ve had to close the centre temporarily for security reasons,” Edwards said, adding that UNHCR would continue its operations despite the security challenges.

Syria has been wracked by violence, with an estimated 17,000 people, mostly civilians, killed since the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad began some 17 months ago. According to media reports, fighting between supporters and opponents of the Syrian Government in the Lebanese capital, Beirut, has killed more than 12 people this week, and there has been an increase in tensions in other parts of the country, such as the northern city of Tripoli.

The registration of refugees has also been affected in the Bekaa valley, located along the border with Syria in eastern Lebanon, in the wake of recent kidnappings of Syrians in the area. “As a protection measure for the refugees, we are avoiding large gatherings of Syrians at registration and distribution points in some areas though assistance continues in a modified way,” Edwards said.

Some 51,000 Syrians have registered or applied to register with UNHCR in Lebanon. One of the refugee agency’s key concerns is to identify and rehabilitate alternative shelters for the growing number of people staying in schools, which are due to resume classes next month.

Edwards said the refugee agency has identified abandoned schools and hopes to relocate some 500 people in the Bekaa valley in the coming fortnight. “Across Lebanon, UNHCR has been continuing its back-to-school drive and yesterday met with school directors in Halba Public School in the north to identify places for refugee children,” he said.

Overall, the total number of Syrian refugees registered or awaiting registration with UNHCR currently stands at 202,512.

UNHCR is also continuing its operations in Turkey, Jordan, Iraq and Syria, the spokesperson added. In Turkey, the country hosting the largest number of Syrian refugees, seven new camps are being built, which will bring the total number of camps to 16, with a capacity to hold 130,000 people.

Meanwhile, the influx of refugees continues in Jordan and Iraq, where UNHCR is working on improving conditions in camps to give people access to basic services such as electricity.

In addition, the spokesperson said, the agency continues its work in Syria itself, despite an escalation in military activity in the capital, Damascus, which has restricted staff movements and the ability of refugees to access the UNHCR office.

“Our hotlines continue to operate giving counselling to refugees who enquire about relocation, food distribution, financial assistance, residency issues, registration and resettlement,” Mr. Edwards said. “Relief items like hygiene kits and mattresses are being distributed to displaced people via our partners.”