Aid convoys headed for a besieged Syrian town on Monday where thousands are trapped and the United Nations says people are reported to have died of starvation.
Dozens of trucks bearing the Red Crescent logo and carrying food and medical supplies left Damascus for Madaya near the Lebanese border as part of an agreement between warring sides.
Madaya is besieged by pro-Syrian government forces, while the two villages in Idlib province are encircled by rebels fighting the Syrian government.
The blockade of Madaya has become a focal issue for Syrian opposition leaders, who told a U.N. envoy last week they would not take part in talks with the government, slated for later this month, until it and other sieges are lifted.