(Reuters) – The United Nations sent its first delivery of humanitarian aid by air to Syria from Iraq on Sunday and said it plans to deliver more food and winter supplies to the mainly Kurdish northeast in the next 12 days.
The first cargo plane carrying food took off from Arbil in Iraq’s northern Kurdistan region and made a one-hour flight to Hassakeh governorate in Syria, which has had no significant aid deliveries since May.
The U.N. said two planes are contracted to do 23 rotations over the next 10 days. The aid includes 10 planeloads of food, enough to feed more than 6,000 Syrian families for the rest of December, as they endure the third winter of the conflict, which began in March 2011.
Using a charted Iluyshin IL-76, the U.N. refugee agency UNHCR also plans to send 300 tons of relief items such as blankets, sleeping mats and kitchen sets to support 60,000 displaced people. A planeload from UNICEF contains health kits, water and sanitation supplies.
“We have been particularly worried about the situation of children and families in the northern parts of Syria because of the insecurity and limited access,” said Maria Calivis, UNICEF Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa.
“These airlifts will help ensure they have access to safe water and health care through the tough winter months ahead.”