Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) has reported that a further 16 people have died from starvation in the besieged Syrian town of Madaya, despite the arrival of a UN aid convoy last month. The charity also announced that a further 33 people were in danger of dying.
The MSF operations director, Brice de la Vingne, described the situation as “totally unacceptable,” noting that people “should have been evacuated weeks ago.”
Late last year, 30 people died in Madaya from starvation, according to MSF. The town made headlines last month when two emergency UN convoys of food and aid supplies finally arrived to help relieve the 40,000 trapped residents.
Madaya—located 15 miles north of Damascus—has been besieged for around six months by the Syrian regime’s forces and its allies in the Hezbollah movement. MSF said that despite the regime letting aid in last month, people are still dying and suffering.
It was also reported by the charity that the regime was stopping sick people from leaving to receive treatment, and that not all medical and food supplies were being let in.
Hezbollah, on the other hand, claims that there have been no additional deaths in the town and that rebel forces are the ones responsible for not letting people leave.
Earlier this month, more than 40 truck loads of aid arrived in Madaya, carrying supplies including rice, vegetable oil, flour, sugar and salt. It is reported that this was the first time supplies had reached the town since October.
