Around 600 people were killed and more than 2,000 were wounded as a result of air strikes and shelling in eastern Ghouta since February 18.

The information was unveiled on Sunday by the UN regional representative in Syria Panos Moumtzis, Reuters reported.

The region is intensifying battles, more and more people are being killed, there are still reports of hunger among the population and strikes against hospitals, he added.

The UN official said the escalation of violence in eastern Ghouta and stressed that “collective punishment of civilians is simply unacceptable.”

Meanwhile, the UN Security Council on February 24 adopted a resolution on a temporary ceasefire in Syria for a period of 30 days for the delivery of humanitarian aid and the evacuation of the wounded in need of medical assistance. However, this does not apply to military operations against a number of terrorist organizations.