Syrian President Bashar Assad’s forces, trying to hammer the city of Homs into submission, killed 19 more people, including two Western journalists, on Wednesday, February 22, in an onslaught that has caused an international outcry for intervention, Reuters reported. Hundreds of people have been killed in daily bombardments of Homs by Assad’s forces using artillery, rockets and tanks. The Red Cross has called for daily ceasefires to allow in urgently needed aid in cities like Homs, while France urged Syria on Wednesday to halt attacks on Homs and allow safe access for aid workers to tend to the wounded. With diplomacy to halt Syria’s bloodshed at a standstill and Assad’s forces intensifying offensives to wipe out rebels, the United States appeared to open the door to eventually arming the Syrian opposition, saying that if a political solution to the crisis was impossible it might have to consider other options. “We don’t want to take actions that would contribute to the further militarization of Syria, because that could take the country down a dangerous path,” White House spokesman Jay Carney said on Tuesday. “But we don’t rule out additional measures.”