NEW YORK – The UN Security Council will hold an emergency meeting Thursdayto discuss the Syrian army’s Russia-backed offensive against rebel groupsthat has forced some 300,000 people to flee, diplomats said, reported AFP.

Sweden, which holds the rotating Security Councillink> presidency, requested theclosed-door meeting along with Kuwait, Swedish diplomats said Tuesday.

The United Nations estimates that between 270,000 and 330,000 Syrians havefled since June 19 the ongoing bombings in the southwestern province ofDaraa.

For Thursday’s meeting, the UN Office for the Coordination of HumanitarianAffairs will report to the 15 Council members about the humanitariansituation in Daraa, which borders Jordan.

The increased violence “indicates yet another failure by the parties of theconflict to protect civilians and civilian infrastructure,” Sweden’s UNmission said.

“Efforts must be intensified to de-escalate violence, also to enable the UNcross-border convoy from Jordan that is on standby at the border to deployas soon as possible.”

Jordan and Israel have said their borders would remain closed, even as tensof thousands of Syrians flee the government offensive.

Jordan, which has recorded some 650,000 Syrian refugees to the UN on itssoil, says it can no longer accept more.

“Intense air and ground based strikes have reportedly continued in multipleareas in Syria’s Daraa Governorate, resulting in the death and injury ofcivilians and the largest displacement in the area since the conflictbegan,” UN deputy spokesman Farhan Haq told reporters.

“The situation of internally displaced people at the Jordanian border isprecarious, aggravated by dusty desert winds and high temperatures of up to45 degrees Celsius (113 Fahrenheit).” – APP/AFP