Algeria has agreed to take in 41 Syrian refugees trapped since mid-April in a desert area that borders neighbouring Morocco, the foreign ministry said on Thursday (June 1st).

The decision comes two days after the UN refugee agency said the plight of the refugees -- who include a pregnant woman -- was "untenable", urging Algeria and Morocco to work for a solution, AFP reported.

In a statement carried by APS news agency, the foreign ministry said Algeria would take in the refugees as an "exceptional humanitarian gesture".

It said the decision was also meant to mark the holy Muslim fasting month of Ramadan.

The refugees would be housed and fed and if they wish be reunited with family members in a third country, a ministry spokesman said in the statement carried by APS.

On Tuesday the UNHCR said "prompt" action by Morocco and Algeria was needed to facilitate "the immediate and safe passage of the 41 vulnerable Syrian refugees".

The group trapped since April 17th included children and women, including at least one who was in need of an urgent Caesarean section, it said.