Jordan agrees to UN request to send aid to stranded Syrians

Jordan today said it had agreed to a UN request to deliver humanitarian aid to tens of thousands of Syrians stranded near a border crossing between the two countries. Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammed al-Kayed said it will be a "one-off" operation to send humanitarian aid across the Rukban border crossing.

According to UN estimates based on satellite images, between 45 thousand and 50 thousand Syrians



have been stuck for months on the Syrian side of the frontier near the Rukban border crossing. Conditions are worsening for them as winter grips the region.

The UN refugee agency says it has registered more than 6 lakh 50 thousand Syrian refugees in Jordan since the conflict in Syria began in March 2011. However, Amman says it is hosting 1.3 million Syrian refugees in the country.