Syrian President Bashar al-Assad met Sunday with the army chief of staff, as the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) says the conditions worsen for civilians in the capital Damascus.

The country's news agency SANA said that Assad met with Gen. Ali Abdullah Dayyoub in Damascus and gave him directives.

SANA, however, spelled no further details about the meeting, but issued the meeting's photos, which marks the second appearance of Assad after the blast on July 18 that killed four senior officials of the president's inner circle.

Meanwhile, the clashes between armed rebels and Syrian troops continued Sunday in a number of neighborhoods in Damascus, namely Razi orchards in al-Mazzeh neighborhood and northwestern district of Barza.

The capital's battles have been raging on since July 15, with Syrian troops flushing out rebels from districts, in which they have been routed in order to wobble the regime grip in the capital.

Clashes have also been reported in the northern city of Aleppo, where rebels announced the commencement of the operation to "free the city from government troops."

Meantime, Syria's state media said the government troops in Aleppo confronted the armed groups, adding that many of the armed men were killed, others rounded up and the rest fled into Turkey.

The state TV denied what some Arab TVs are broadcasting about the security situation in Aleppo.

While the daily grind of violence rages on, the ICRC said the conditions are worsening for civilians in Damascus.

In a statement obtained by Xinhua, the ICRC said "humanitarian needs are growing as the situation in the city worsens and as large numbers of people flee their neighborhoods in search of safe haven."

"In Damascus, people continue to search desperately for safety, " the statement said, adding that the ICRC and the Syrian Arab Red Crescent have intensified their response to the situation.

"Because of the ongoing violence, various neighborhoods in Damascus have been cut off from one another, and this is making it progressively more difficult for people to move," said Marianne Gasser, head of the ICRC's delegation in Syria.

"Every day presents new challenges for people trapped in the midst of the fighting: they are finding it harder and harder to go out and buy daily necessities or even to leave their homes."

The ICRC said it is providing support for the Syrian Arab Red Crescent in preparing mobile health units, which will start serving several of the schools sheltering displaced people.

The ICRC said that more medical supplies will be provided.

"The ICRC and the Syrian Arab Red Crescent's humanitarian activities are urgently needed, and will continue, despite the precarious conditions."

(CNTV.cn, Xinhua News Agency July 22, 2012)