Attacks by Syrian troops on the Damascus suburb of Daraya on 24 August have caused more than 200,000 people to flee the country, according to the UN refugee agency. President Bashar al-Asad sent hundreds of soldiers and dozens of tanks into the area, following a three-day bombardment of rebel positions by artillery and helicopter gunships. Reports says at least 70 people have been killed so far, and locals now fear the army will again round up and execute young men in the area, as occurred days earlier in Mouadamiya.