White House spokesman Josh Earnest described events in Madaya as sickening.
Human Rights Watch called on the international community to focus its efforts on delivering aid to Madaya’s residents and to other areas besieged by Syrian government forces. The organization said deaths were increasing because of severe shortages of food and medicine.
It quoted activists and residents as saying Syrian forces and Lebanon’s Hezbollah had prevented any aid from entering since last October and barred entry and exit, including for relief workers.
The organization also cited doctors’ accounts describing residents as wasted and weak from hunger.
The National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces expressed regret at the United Nations’ welcome for the Syrian government’s announcement that UN organizations would be allowed to reach Madaya. It called for more pressure on Damascus to guarantee humanitarian access to besieged areas without restrictions or conditions.
Doctors Without Borders announced yesterday, Friday, that 23 people had died of starvation since December 1. Videos posted by activists showed residents boiling and eating herbs, searching rubbish for anything to sustain them, and relying on water and salt to stay alive.