MONTEVIDEO: Several Latin American nations prepared Friday to evacuate their citizens from strife-torn Syria amid an uptick in fighting between the army and anti-government rebels.
So far, only Brazil has ordered its diplomats to leave Damascus temporarily for Beirut, the Lebanese capital, with one official staying behind at the embassy to handle consular matters.
Agency Brasil, the state news agency, estimated that around 3,000 Brazilians lived in Syria before the anti-regime revolt escalated but it had no details on how many have since departed.
Brazilian authorities had readied an evacuation plan for those still in the country, it reported.
Chile, meanwhile, asked its 158 nationals to leave Syria due to the deteriorating security situation and planned their evacuation to the border with Lebanon.
So far, only seven Chileans, including six members of the same family, have been repatriated.
The Chilean ambassador in Damascus, Patricio Damm, said he was looking into a possible withdrawal of his embassy staff.
Argentina said around 75 of its less than 200 citizens still in Syria had asked to be evacuated and indicated that it could close its embassy if the situation worsens.
Venezuela and Cuba would not say whether they have nationals in Syria or whether they are contemplating closing their Damascus embassies.
Mexico, which has no embassy in Damascus, this week advised its citizens against traveling to Syria and urged those already there to leave.
Mexican authorities said they were closely monitoring the situation and were in permanent contact with their embassy in Egypt, which was providing consular support.
Friday, Syrian forces launched an all-out assault on opposition strongholds in Damascus, a day after rebels seized crossings on the Iraq and Turkey borders on the deadliest day so far in the 16-month conflict.
Rebel fighters also clashed with troops in several neighborhoods of Aleppo in what a human rights watchdog said was the fiercest fighting so far in Syria's second city.
The UN refugee agency UNHCR said more than 30,000 Syrians have fled to neighboring Lebanon since Wednesday as a result of the escalating fighting in Damascus.
More than 17,000 people have died since the rebellion against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad began in March, according to Red Cross officials.
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