05/24/2017
From cholera in Yemen to attacks on hospitals in Syria, conflict threatens lives of over 24 million children in the Middle East and North Africa
https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/cholera-yemen-attacks-hospitals-syria-conflict-threatens-lives-over-24-million
UNICEF/UN057343/Al-Karim, AMMAN, 24 May 2017, – Violence and conflict in the Middle East and North Africa have put in jeopardy the health of 24 million children in Yemen, Syria, the Gaza Strip, Iraq, Libya and Sudan. Damage to health infrastructure is depriving children of essential health care. Water and sanitation services have been compromised, causing waterborne diseases to spread while…, In Yemen, (9.6 million children in need): The two-year conflict has pushed Yemen to the brink of famine and plunged the country into one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises, with widespread severe acute malnutrition among children, Salaries for health care and sanitation workers haven’t been paid for more than seven months, Contaminated water sources,…, In Syria, (5.8 million children in need): More than 2 million children live under siege and in hard-to-reach areas with little to no humanitarian aid. Surgical and other lifesaving supplies are regularly removed from the few convoys that are allowed into these areas, Many children do not have access to life-saving vaccinations and those who fall ill or are…, In the Gaza Strip, (1 million children in need): Since the main power plant shut down on 16 April, power cuts have reduced water supply to 40 litres per person per day, less than half of the minimum international standard, Wastewater treatment plants now deposit 100,000 cubic metres of raw sewage into the sea daily, increasing the risk of waterborne diseases, 14…, In Iraq, (5.1 million children in need): Water supplies in camps for the displaced around Mosul are stretched to the limit with new families arriving daily, many with malnourished children, The widespread use of unsafe well water, with the accumulation of solid waste in and around Mosul, are exposing children to the risk of waterborne diseases, UNICEF…, In Libya, (450,000 children in need): Last year, Libya recorded 20 attacks against health facilities, second only to Syria, Immunization programmes have been facing challenges since the conflict erupted in 2011, with suspected measles cases reported among young children, Without new funding, over 1.3 million children won’t be vaccinated against measles or…, In Sudan, (2.3 million children in need): Over 8,000 cases of acute watery diarrhoea have been recorded across 10 of the 18 states in just eight months, including those hosting large numbers of refugees from South Sudan. Cases of acute watery diarrhoea are set to rise rapidly once the rainy season begins in June. Over 200,000 children under the age of five…
