More than 11,000 children killed or maimed in Yemen’s civil war, UN says

Dubai:

More than 11,000 children are known to have been killed or maimed in Yemen’s civil war since it escalated nearly eight years ago, the United Nations said on Monday.

“The true toll of this conflict is likely to be much higher,” children’s agency UNICEF said of the victims of the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.

“Thousands of children have lost their lives, hundreds of thousands more are at risk of dying of preventable diseases or starvation,” said UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell.

About 2.2 million Yemeni children are acutely malnourished, a quarter of whom are under the age of five, and most are extremely at risk of cholera, measles and other vaccine-preventable diseases, the government said. UNICEF.

War in Yemen erupted in 2014 and soon saw Iran-backed Houthi rebels seize the capital Sanaa, prompting Saudi-led forces to step in to support the government the following year.

Hundreds of thousands of people have since died, either from fighting or indirectly from unclean water, disease outbreaks, hunger and other impacts.

The agency’s latest figures confirm 3,774 child deaths between March 2015 and September 2022.

A UN-brokered truce lasted six months until October 2, but the warring parties then failed to agree on an extension.

Since then, at least 62 children have been killed or injured, UNICEF said.

“The urgent renewal of the truce would be a positive first step that would allow critical humanitarian access,” Ms Russell said.

“Ultimately, only lasting peace will allow families to rebuild their shattered lives and begin to plan for the future.”

The UN agency also said 3,904 boys had been recruited into the fighting over the years and more than 90 girls had been given roles including working at checkpoints.

UNICEF has appealed for $484.4 million to address the humanitarian crisis.

“If the children of Yemen are to have any chance of a decent future…all those with influence must ensure they are protected and supported,” said Ms Russell.

(Except for the title, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)