The New York Times features an editorial and a commentary on the deteriorating humanitarian situation in conflict-ridden Syria.

New York Times: The Message From Homs
“In the last four days, at least 800 people — mostly women, children and the elderly — have been evacuated from Homs, one of Syria’s most embattled cities in what was an important, yet pathetically incomplete, humanitarian pause in the fighting. … Thousands more remain in Homs, and millions more around the country are under attack and being denied food, medicine and other necessities. Meanwhile, even with the truce, civilians and aid workers remain at serious risk. … Synchronizing all these moving parts [to find a solution] will not be easy, but the tragedy in Homs is just one more reason the effort should be made” (2/10).

New York Times: Use Force to Save Starving Syrians
Danny Postel and Nader Hashemi, the associate director and director, respectively, of the Center for Middle East Studies at the Josef Korbel School of International Studies at the University of Denver

“…Any armed group that prevents humanitarian access — whether the Syrian regime’s forces or rebel militias — should be subject to coercive measures. … An external, international force must be introduced to guarantee the safe passage of food and medicine to starving Syrian civilians. … Using force to prevent starvation will not immediately resolve the crisis in Syria. It will, however, make a qualitative difference in the lives of hundreds of thousands of Syrian civilians. It will also send a clear message to the Syrian regime and the extremist militias: The international community, after three years of watching this moral and humanitarian catastrophe unfold from the sidelines, is finally prepared to act” (2/10).