Madaya won't get aid before Monday: Red Cross
Aid desperately needed in three besieged towns in war-torn Syria cannot be delivered before Monday, the Red Cross said, citing logistical problems.
Syria's regime agreed on Thursday to allow aid into Madaya, a town of 42,000 people that has been surrounded by the army for six months and has become notorious in recent days as a result of the mass starvation happening there.
"The distribution of aid will not take place on Sunday for logistical reasons; we are working hard for it to take place on Monday," said Pawel Krzysiek, spokesman in Damascus of the International Committee of the Red Cross.
Tamam Mehrez of the Syrian Red Crescent had said that "technically we are ready to begin distribution as early as Sunday, but if there are logistical issues it will be Monday at the latest".
"Anyway, I am sure there will be food for everyone," he said.
The UN had faced calls to act after local doctors said dozens of people in the town had died of starvation during the siege.
Local activists say landmines surround the town and that snipers shoot those who try to leave to look for food.
Doctors Without Borders, or MSF, said it welcomed the reports but said a delivery of medicine was needed immediately.
According to MSF, about 20,000 lives are threatened and 23 patients in the health centre supported by the group have starved to death since December. They included children and the elderly, the organisation said.
Al-Manar, a Lebanese television station affiliated with Hezbollah, whose fighters aid regime forces, said an agreement had been reached for the UN to take aid to Madaya.
Both the UN and the Red Cross were expected to deliver aid to Madaya.
The UN Security Council is to discuss the matter behind closed doors on Monday, although no decision is expected. The meeting was requested by Spain and New Zealand.
Syria's conflict erupted with anti-government protests in March 2011 and quickly evolved into a multi-sided war that has killed more than 250,000 people and forced millions from their homes.
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