UNICEF: Over 6.5m children need humanitarian assistance in Syria

More than 6.5 million children in Syria are in need of aid, the highest ever recorded since the beginning of the civil war in the country, 11 years ago, UNICEF said yesterday.

“Millions of children continue to live in fear, need and uncertainty inside Syria and the neighbouring countries,” said Adele Khodr, UNICEF regional director for Middle East and North Africa, in a statement.

According to the statement, more than 6.5 million children in Syria are in need of assistance and about 5.8 million Syrian children depend on aid in neighbouring countries.

The UN official said many families struggle to make ends meet, explaining that prices of basic supplies including food are skyrocketing, partially as a result of the crisis in Ukraine.

UNICEF has received “less than half of the required funding for this year”, Khodr added, which will impact its ability to provide the necessary aid.

UNICEF explained that “the crisis in Syria is not over yet”, noting that 13,000 children have been killed or injured since 2011, including 213 children who were killed “during the first three months of 2022”.

Nearly half a million people have died since the start of the conflict in Syria in 2011, which led to the largest displacement of people since World War II.

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