Govt OKs UN aid convoys to besieged areas

Envoy: Deliveries a test of whether warring parties will allow in humanitarian supplies

UN convoys delivering aid to thousands of besieged Syrians were due to set out on Wednesday, but hopes for lasting peace dimmed the day after Turkey called for a ground operation in its war-torn neighbor.

Syria's government has approved access to seven besieged areas, including the city of Madaya where dozens of people are thought to have died from starvation, a spokeswoman for the UN's humanitarian affairs office said.