More than 2 million children live under siege and in hard-to-reach areas across Syria with little to no humanitarian aid, the United Nation’s children agency said in a report Wednesday.
“Surgical and other lifesaving supplies are regularly removed from the few convoys that are allowed into these areas,” UNICEF said.
“The conflict in Syria has rendered 5.8 million children in need. Many children do not have access to life-saving vaccinations and those who fall ill or are injured struggle to get treatment.”
UNICEF went on: “Attacks on hospitals and other health facilities have become commonplace, almost 20 per month between January and March this year. The few hospitals that are still operational function with limited staff and services.”
UNICEF warned that the threat of polio, such as the outbreak that hit Syria in 2013, still looms.
“Violence is crippling health systems in conflict-affected countries and threatens children’s very survival,” said Geert Cappelaere, UNICEF Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa. “Beyond the bombs, bullets and explosions, countless children are dying in silence from diseases that could easily be prevented and treated.”
UNICEF earlier called on the Assad regime to lift all sieges and allow unconditional, unhindered access to Syrian children in besieged areas across the country. (Source: Syrian Coalition’s Media Department + Agencies)
