BBC News with Gaenor Howells

The United Nations says an estimated 1.5 million people in Syria are in need of food aid. The announcement by the UN humanitarian affairs office came as the UN humanitarian envoy Valerie Amos said not enough aid was reaching Syrians in need. Imogen Foulkes reports from Geneva.

The United Nations wants Syria to allow in aid as a matter of

urgency

. A meeting of UN agencies in Geneva has drafted a 90-day humanitarian plan with food and other supplies for 1.5 million people, but the figure is just an estimate. The UN has been unable to enter Syria since the conflict began. Now a handful of UN aid workers will be allowed in to make a preliminary

assessment

. From there, they hope to begin the relief operation, but it all depends on Damascus agreeing.

Thousands of Libyans have staged a rally in Tripoli to

denounce

moves by leaders in the east to create a semi-autonomous territory. Demonstrators chanted slogans demanding unity and, in a show of

disdain

, used their shoes to hit photographs of Ahmed Zubair al-Senussi, the head of the regional council seeking a split. Gabriel Gatehouse was at the demonstration.

Well, there must be several thousand people here in Martyrs Square, and their slogans make it all perfectly clear. "Libya United", "No, No to

Federalism

", they are chanting. The declaration earlier this week of a semi-autonomous state in the east in Cyrenaica is really exciting the passions here, and not just here, there are demonstrations taking place in cities across the country.