Jordanian army delivers aid to Syrian refugees at border camp

Jordan's army on Saturday confirmed that long-awaited aid had been delivered to thousands of Syrian refugees stranded near a border crossing between the two countries.

The kingdom sealed its border with Syria in 2016, after an Islamic State group militant attack on Jordanian border guards left seven officers dead.

The closure ended regular UN aid shipments from Jordan to displaced Syrians struggling for survival in a remote stretch of desert.

A Jordanian military source said that the aid was handed to community leaders in the Rukban region, Petra news agency reported on Saturday.

An official said Jordan still adheres to its position that relief agencies should secure access via Syria to reach stranded refugees.

Earlier in January, Jordan said it had agreed to a UN request to deliver humanitarian aid to tens of thousands of Syrians stranded near a border crossing between the two countries.

Jordan's foreign ministry said there would be a "one-off" operation to send "humanitarian aid across the Rukban border crossing" towards a desert area where the Syrians are stuck.

According to UN estimates, based on satellite images, between 45,000 and 50,000 Syrians have been stuck for months on the Syrian side of the frontier near the Rukban border crossing.

Conditions are worsening for them as winter grips the region.