GENEVA — The United Nations says Thursday it hoped aid convoys could head into Syria’s besieged rebel-held enclave of Eastern Ghouta within days, after the Damascus government appeared to have finally provided authorization.
“We may now be able to go to Eastern Ghouta in the next few days,” says Jan Egeland, head of the UN’s humanitarian task force for Syria.
He tells reporters in Geneva that he received word during a task force meeting on Thursday “that we may have the first facilitation letter, permit from the government, to go to [the main Eastern Ghouta town of] Douma in a very long time.”
But he stresses that the five-hour daily “humanitarian pause” declared by Russia for the enclave was not enough to allow aid deliveries or ensure orderly medical evacuations.
“Five hours is not enough,” he insists, underscoring that deliveries take time and that an estimated 1,000 civilians needed medical evacuation.
More than 40 trucks loaded with aid have been unable to reach the 400,000 people living in the battered enclave.
— AFP
Help us report truthfully on social media
As a multimedia journalist, my job is to take the quality, fact-based journalism produced by The Times of Israel newsroom and make it accessible across every platform — from Instagram posts to podcasts to short-form videos.
This is how many, especially young people, consume news these days. But misinformation is rampant on social media. Our team at ToI produces accurate, responsible short-form reporting on Israel and the Jewish world.
If you believe in the importance of factual social media journalism, please consider joining our reader support group, The Times of Israel Community. Your financial support is essential to sustain responsible multimedia reporting.
— Gabriella Jacobs, multimedia journalist
Support our work
Support our work
Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this
You're a dedicated reader
We’re really pleased that you’ve read X Times of Israel articles in the past month.
That’s why we started the Times of Israel - to provide discerning readers like you with must-read coverage of Israel and the Jewish world.
So now we have a request. Unlike other news outlets, we haven’t put up a paywall. But as the journalism we do is costly, we invite readers for whom The Times of Israel has become important to help support our work by joining The Times of Israel Community.
For as little as $6 a month you can help support our quality journalism while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members.
Thank you,
David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel
Join Our Community
Join Our Community
Already a member? Sign in to stop seeing this
From the Liveblog of
Thursday, March 1, 2018
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on Google
