A convoy bearing desperately-needed supplies for starving Syrians set out for the rebel-held town of Madaya on Monday, NBC News reported.
More than two dozen people — including at least six infants — have died of starvation since Dec. 1, according to Doctors Without Borders. The United Nations warned that nearly 42,000 are at risk of hunger or starvation. A doctor in town told NBC News that residents have resorted to eating cats to stay alive.
The city has been blockaded for six monte by government and pro-government forces. The government agreed late last week to allow aid into Madaya and to other towns also facing starvation.
The convoy will bring food for around 40,000 to last a month.
“Whatever we bring in, it’s not enough,” Iyad Nasr, a spokesman for the U.N.’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitairan Affairs said.
