UPDATE 1-Syrian forces shell Homs district, kill 12-activists

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AMMAN, Feb 21 (Reuters) - Syrian government forces

killed at least 12 people and wounded 100 on Tuesday when they

unleashed a heavy artillery barrage on a rebel-held district of

the city of Homs, activists said.

"The Free Syrian Army is not letting the army enter Baba

Amro. It responded this morning by 130 mm artillery that hit the

neighbourhood at random," activist Nader al-Husseini told

Reuters from the district.

"Several shells are falling each minute," he added.

Two children were among the victims, he said. The report

could not be independently confirmed.

Government forces backed by armour and under the control of

Alawite officers, from the same minority sect as President

Bashar al-Assad, have been advancing on Baba Amro, a Muslim

Sunni neighbourhood, since the offensive on Homs began on Feb 3.

Tanks are now deployed at the Inshaat district opposite Baba

Amro, according to opposition sources.

About 60 percent of Baba Amro's 100,000 population are

estimated to have fled. The district is connected with several

villages that have become part of the urban sprawl around the

mixed city of one million, which has a large 30 to 40 percent

Alawite minority.

(Reporting by Khaled Yacoub Oweis; Editing by Angus MacSwan)