More aid reaches trapped Syrians in town of Madaya

A second batch of aid reached a besieged Syrian town and two trapped villages on Thursday. The United Nations accused rival factions of committing war crimes by causing civilians to starve to death.

The British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors the war, said aid trucks entered the town of Madaya near the border with Lebanon, and the villages of Kefraya and al-Foua in Idlib province in the northwest. Syrian state media said six trucks had gone into Madaya.

For months, tens of thousands have been blockaded by government troops in Madaya and surrounded by rebel forces in the two villages.

“According to the ICRC team that entered Madaya, the people were very happy, even crying when they realised that wheat flour is on the way,” Dominik Stillhart, International Committee of the Red Cross director of operations, said in New York.

Aid officials hoped to bring in more supplies, with fuel deliveries set for Sunday, said Stillhart.

“We hope . . . this effort will continue,” said Yacoub El Hillo, the UN resident and humanitarian co-ordinator in Syria, who accompanied the convoy.

“Starving civilians is a war crime,” said UN Human Rights High Commissioner Zeid bin Ra’ad.

– (Reuters)