A man from a refugee camp waits to vaccinate his daughter in Baghdad, Iraq [Xinhua]
A new report released by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) says that a third of all Iraqi children require humanitarian aid while as many as 20 per cent are in danger of exploitation.
UNICEF says that there are at least 1.5 million children displaced by conflict in Iraq, with that number likely to rise if and when the Iraqi army moves to liberate the northern city of Mosul from the clutches of the Islamic State.
It says that the number of children in danger of death, injury, sexual violence, abduction, or indoctrination into a violent extremist group has increased by 1.3 million in the past year-and-a-half to reach 3.6 million – roughly one in every five children.
The report, titled A Heavy Price for Children, also reveals that “many families now face deteriorating conditions following military operations in Fallujah and around Mosul”.
“Children in Iraq are in the firing line and are being repeatedly and relentlessly targeted,” said Peter Hawkins, UNICEF Iraq Representative in a press release made public this weekend.
“We appeal to all parties for restraint and to respect and protect children. We must help give children the support they need to recover from the horrors of war and contribute to a more peaceful and prosperous Iraq.”
The report also addresses the specter of child kidnappings, which occurred immediately after the fall of Baghdad in 2003 and resurged in recent years.
UNICEF estimates that at least 50 children are abducted every month.
Related: Iraqi refugees dying under extreme heat
The BRICS Post with inputs from Agencies
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