UN sends first Syria aid without government consent
Al-Huriya News Agency - The United Nations has sent its first aid convoy into Syria without the consent of the government in Damascus.
It comes a week after the UN adopted a resolution allowing aid deliveries without the Syrian government's approval.
Nine trucks carrying food and sanitation supplies entered Syria from Turkey on Thursday, officials said.
The UN says more than 10.8 million Syrians are in need of aid after more than three years of brutal civil war.
More than 150,000 people have been killed in Syria and over 9 million have been displaced from their homes by the fighting, which began in 2011 as an uprising against President Bashar al-Assad.
Aid obstructed
The trucks entered northern Syria from the Bab al-Salam crossing on the border with Turkey, the UN said.
Officials said it would take some time for the aid to reach the intended towns.
Until now, almost 90% of UN aid to Syria has gone to parts of the country still controlled by the government.
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon accused both the government and opposition of obstructing aid "as a tactic of war".
