A Syrian activist group says a 10-day government assault on a suburb of the capital Damascus has left dozens dead, hundreds more wounded, and caused a major new humanitarian crisis.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said in a report Saturday that the current campaign is the worst of several assaults on Douma, a hotbed of dissent, since the uprising against President Bashar Assad began in March last year.

The Observatory says residents suffer from daily shelling as well as shortages of food, electricity and running water.

Troops loyal to Assad are strong in central Damascus, but have battled to control the ring of suburbs and settlements in the surrounding countryside. The army launches frequent offensives into the suburbs only to see them slip back into rebel control.