Millions of kids hit by violence

13 Dec HMV News

The UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) says millions of kids have been affected by violence in conflicts in the Middle East and Africa during 2014, calling it one of the worst years on record for the world’s children.

In a statement on Monday, UNICEF said 15 million children suffered from extreme violence in 2014 in the current conflict areas of Iraq, Syria, Gaza, Ukraine, South Sudan and the Central African Republic (CAR).

Referring to the devastating situation of many children across the globe, UNICEF Executive Director Anthony Lake said, “Never in recent history were so many children exposed to such unspeakable brutality.’’

“Children have been killed while studying in the classroom and while sleeping in their beds,” Lake said, adding, “They have been orphaned, kidnapped, tortured, recruited, raped and even sold as slaves.”

The UNICEF statement said the 50-day Israeli war on the Gaza Strip left 538 children dead, 3,370 wounded and 54,000 homeless.

The foreign-backed war in Syria has ruined the lives of over 7.3 million children in Syria alone, making 1.7 million children refugees, the statement said, adding, that violence in neighboring Iraq also affected around 2.7 million children.

In the CAR, violence has forced one-fifth of the population to leave their homes and some 2.3 million children are affected by the conflict there, UNICEF said.