New York - Sanaa: Europe and the Arabs
The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) said that nearly 10 million Yemeni children are still in urgent need of humanitarian assistance, nine years after the conflict in their country.
The organization stated in a press release that the decline in active conflict since April 2022 has led to a decrease in the number of civilian casualties and suffering across societies, but the situation remains fragile without reaching a sustainable political settlement. She emphasized that this settlement is particularly critical at a time when more than half of the population - 18.2 million people, including 9.8 million children - still need life-saving support.
The organization indicated that fragility is most clearly evident in the persistence of malnutrition in the country, as more than 2.7 million children suffer from acute malnutrition, and 49 percent of children under the age of five suffer from stunting or chronic malnutrition, a condition that hinders children’s maximum growth. their potential with irreversible damage to their long-term physical and cognitive development. According to what was stated in the United Nations daily news bulletin, a copy of which we received this morning
"evil combination"
“The evil combination of years of prolonged conflict, a collapsed economy and a failing social support system has had a devastating impact on the lives of Yemen’s most vulnerable children,” said UNICEF Executive Director Katherine Russell.
She explained that a very large number of children are still deprived of basic necessities, including proper nutrition, which she said may threaten future generations, unless urgent measures are taken to provide children with the preventive measures and treatment they desperately need.
UNICEF said that it aims to reach more than 500,000 Yemeni children during the current year with treatment for severe acute malnutrition, which is a crucial measure to contribute to reducing the deaths of children under the age of five. Despite truce-like conditions, sporadic fighting and exchanges of fire continue in many parts of the country with children falling victim to landmines and explosive remnants of war. Since the conflict began in 2015, more than 11,500 children have been killed or injured as a result of the conflict, according to UNICEF.
“UNICEF and its partners will continue our life-saving work in Yemen to help ensure that children who have suffered so much have a brighter future,” said Katherine Russell. “To do this, we need the continued support, commitment and solidarity of our partners and the international community.”
UNICEF stated that it urgently needs $142 million during the current year to respond to the humanitarian crisis and continue providing humanitarian support, which includes nutrition, health, water, sanitation, hygiene, education and protection services.