UN urges Syria to allow aid to 2 million in desperate need

The UN humanitarian chief is urging the Syrian government to allow the delivery of aid to more than 2 million desperate people in hard-to-reach areas.

Mark Lowcock told the UN Security Council on Tuesday that the situation in Idlib, one of the opposition's last remaining footholds in Syria, is "alarming," with airstrikes, clashes between armed groups, overcrowding and severely stretched basic services.

He said the government asked the UN to provide assistance after it retook the former rebel-held Damascus suburbs of eastern Ghouta and released USD 16 million. But he said the UN has only received authorization to visit once since mid-March.

Lowcock reiterated the UN's request to facilitate access, saying the government has approved a convoy to aid 70,000 people in Douma, but "facilitation letters have not been provided.