UN inquiry to begin into Syria aid convoy attack

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has announced the panel will "ascertain the facts of the incident" which on September 19 saw 18 relief trucks coordinated by the UN and Syrian Arab Red Crescent completely destroyed.

Ban will review the results of the investigation, led by retired Indian Lieutenant General Abhijit Guha, and decide what further steps to take.

The UN said the incident in northern Aleppo province could constitute a war crime.

Both Moscow and Damascus denied they were behind the strike, insisting it was shelling, while a UN expert has said satellite images show the deadly attack was caused by air raids.

The trucks that were hit were part of a 31-vehicle convoy that was unloading food and medical supplies for tens of thousands of people at a warehouse of the Syrian Red Crescent (SARC).

It was due to head to the town of Orum al-Kubra, in Aleppo province, to deliver humanitarian assistance to 78,000 people.

The UN briefly suspended all humanitarian aid deliveries to Syria pending a review of the security situation.

"Let me be clear: if this callous attack is found to be a deliberate targeting of humanitarians, it would amount to a war crime," UN aid chief Stephen O'Brien said previously.