UN humanitarian boss heads to Syria

The United Nations humanitarian chief is heading to Syria to urge the government to allow relief workers access to the hardest-hit areas.

Valerie Amos is due to arrive in Damascus today and will leave on Friday.

She has said the aim of her visit is “to urge all sides to allow unhindered access for humanitarian relief workers so they can evacuate the wounded and deliver essential supplies”.

Baroness Amos’s visit comes as Syrian president Bashar Assad defies mounting international pressure to end the year-old crackdown on the uprising against him.

The UN says more than 7,500 people have been killed since the uprising started in March 2011. Activists put the death toll at more than 8,000.