Two killed in Syria's besieged Daraya as aid refused

Mortar shelling by government forces in Syria's besieged town of Daraya has left a father and son dead and at least five others injured, as civilians waited for aid convoys to arrive.

"The Syrian government’s refusal to allow sorely needed humanitarian aid convoy into the town is a cruel reality check of the suffering of thousands of civilians besieged there since 2012," Amnesty International said.

Five trucks organised by the Red Cross, the United Nations and the Syrian Arab Red Crescent were set to deliver baby milk and medical and school supplies - but the delivery did not include food, which is what is most needed.

"Sadly our aid convoy with was refused entry to Daraya, despite being given prior clearance from all sides," the Committee of the Red Cross [ICRC] tweeted.

"People in Daraya are in need of everything. It’s tragic that even the basics we were bringing today are being delayed unnecessarily," ICRC added.

The delivery would have been the first since the siege began more than three years ago but was eventually cancelled after Syrian government forces held it up for some seven hours outside Daraya.

"Thousands of civilians in Daraya need food and other essential humanitarian aid. They need also to be spared from relentless and unlawful military attacks by government forces," said Neil Sammonds, Amnesty International’s Researcher on Syria.

Daraya had a pre-war population of around 80,000 people but that has dropped by almost 90 percent, with remaining residents suffering from severe shortages and malnutrition.

Maybe this way you'll pay more attention to our suffering - we are starving to death!

Despite a truce coming into effect in Daraya more than two months ago, not even a loaf of bread had entered the city, according to activists.

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In April, dozens of women and children held a silent demonstration in a downtown square in Daraya, reduced to rubble by the heavy shelling.

The protesters raised banners bearing slogans demanding an end to the siege and the introduction of humanitarian aid.

"Maybe this way you'll pay more attention to our suffering - we are starving to death!" one poster read, with a design evoking the Islamic State group flag.

They also held pictures of victims of hunger in Madaya, where dozens have died. Aid workers who entered the city earlier in the year reported seeing skeletal people and parents giving their children sleeping pills to calm their hunger.

Images were posted online of the emaciated children and adults which led to an international outcry.

"Are you waiting for us to look like this to help?" read one caption.

A February report by the Netherlands-based aid group PAX and the Washington-based Syria Institute found that 1.09 million people are living in 46 besieged communities in Syria, far more than the 18 listed by the UN.

It said most are under siege by the Syrian government in the suburbs of Damascus, the capital, and Homs.