UN resumes air drops to IS-hit Syrian city

GENEVA: The UN has restarted air drops of food to support 93 500 Syrians besieged by Islamic State in Deir al-Zor, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) said yesterday.

Air drops were halted on January 15 after IS militants cut the besieged zone in two and overran the drop zone that had been used for 177 air drops since April.

WFP spokesperson Bettina Luescher said a new drop zone was now in use and air drops resumed on Sunday, with two drops at the new site so far. A total of 3 340 tons of food and other humanitarian aid have been dropped since last April.

Humanitarian experts say air drops are a last resort because they are complicated and deliver a fraction of the volume carried by a convoy of trucks.

Moreover, the air drops to Deir al-Zor are conducted at high altitude because of the threat of attack from the ground. A first attempt last year failed, with all the pallets blown off course or smashing into the ground after the parachutes failed.

Despite the interruption to WFP air drops, Syrian government helicopters managed to bring in some food and medicine, mainly for soldiers, as well as evacuating wounded troops, the UN humanitarian office said in a report.

WFP food stocks in the city are almost depleted, and Red Crescent volunteers on the ground have been trying to put together food rations from pallets that were damaged in earlier air drops. This month, an IS offensive cut off two eastern neighbourhoods of 6 000 people.