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Swiss aid convoy reaches conflict-stricken Donetsk

Xinhua, May 26, 2016 Adjust font size:

A total of 473 tonnes of water treatment chemicals were delivered by a Swiss aid convoy by train to the east Ukrainian city of Donetsk, the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA) reported Wednesday.

"The train was loaded on the government-controlled side before crossing the line between Kostyantynivka and Yasinovataya, thus providing the first humanitarian aid to be brought into the non-government-controlled area by rail since the conflict began," FDFA said in a statement.

Consisting mainly of aluminum sulphate, a compound used to purify drinking water, the shipment was sent to the Donbas waterworks which supplies municipalities on both sides of the contact line.

A second convoy made up of 15 lorries carrying 245 tonnes of chemicals assisted the local branch of the Donbas waterworks located in the government-controlled-side.

Both sets of convoys also included medical supplies.

The Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation has been delivering water treatment chemicals to the Donbas waterworks since spring 2015. Enditem