Over 10 Tons of Russian Humanitarian Aid Delivered to Syria's Hama Province

Over 10 metric tons (11 US tons) of Russian humanitarian aid was delivered to settlements of the Syrian province of Hama, which were earlier besieged and controlled by the Nusra Front militant group, a RIA Novosti correspondent reported from the scene.

FAN-ASH-SHAMALI (Syria), (Sputnik) – The distribution of aid was given out in the Fan-ash-Shamali settlement, bringing together official representatives of eight nearby villages.

Syria has been mired in civil war since 2011, with the country’s government fighting numerous opposition factions and jihadist groups, including Daesh and the Nusra Front, both outlawed in many countries, including Russia.

According to the International Committee of the Red Cross, the civil war in Syria has left at least 250,000 people dead, and over a million injured. At least 13 million Syrians remain dependent on humanitarian assistance. In late February, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Hussein said that over 450,000 people remained trapped in besieged towns throughout Syria where humanitarian agencies could not provide them with aid.

On February 22, Russia and the United States reached an agreement on a ceasefire in Syria. The ceasefire took effect on February 27 and is generally holding across the country despite reported minor violations.

According to the Russian Defense Ministry, the personnel of the Russian reconciliation center at the Hmeimim airbase delivered over 19 metric tons of humanitarian aid to settlements in three Syrian provinces in the past week.