French President Francois Hollande delivers a speech during the European scout meeting "Roverway 2016" at the Arenes de Lutece in Paris, France, August 3, 2016. REUTERS/Geoffroy Van Der Hasselt/Pool

VENTOTENE, Italy (Reuters) - French President Francois Hollande said on Monday the international community would be left ashamed if nothing was done to stop the unfolding humanitarian crisis in Syria’s northern city of Aleppo.

An upsurge in fighting and air strikes in and around the city, split between government-held west and rebel-held eastern sectors, has prompted growing international concern, galvanized by pictures on Thursday of a dazed, bloodied child.

“We know there are conflicts that are unresolved and I’m thinking of what’s happening in Syria with this crisis in Aleppo, this humanitarian catastrophe which one day will bring shame to the international community if we do nothing,” Hollande told reporters alongside German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi.

The plight of thousands of civilians in Aleppo has been aggravated in besieged areas by dire shortages of basic goods, leading the World Food Programme to warn of a “nightmarish” situation.