Syrian War: UN Says Children Still Bear Deep Scars After 11 years
Syrian children have continued to endure physical and psychological scars and the trauma of displacement, as a result of more than a decade of civil war in the country,
The United Nations Children’s Fund UNICEF issued the warning on Tuesday in a statement.
“In 2021, nearly 900 children in Syria lost their lives or were injured. This brings the total number of children killed and injured since the beginning of the crisis to close to 13,000,’’ UNICEF stated.
It added that last year, a third of children in Syria showed signs of psychological distress including anxiety, depression, fatigue, or frequent trouble sleeping.
On March 15, 2011, peaceful demonstrations against the Syrian Bashar al-Assad led government began.
Government forces put down the protest using excessive force, starting a civil war that still rages.
In spite of a decrease in violence following al-Assad’s Russian-Iranian-backed recapture of two-thirds of the country from the opposition, rebel-held areas in northwest Syria still remain targets for frequent airstrikes and shelling.
Meanwhile, aid organisations working inside Syria have warned that the country was now facing a new hunger crisis.
Else Kirk, of the German aid organisation, Welthungerhilfe, said that the tense U.S. Russian relations since the war in Ukraine began would affect the humanitarian corridor into northwest Syria.
“This will restrain the ability of UN agencies to deliver humanitarian aid cross border into north-west Syria, with catastrophic effects on a region that is sorely dependent on humanitarian assistance,’’ she said.
