Save the Children calls for decisive diplomacy to halt child deaths in war zones
Many children witnessed killings and dead bodies in the streets, with some reporting seeing young people arrested or killed. Over half of the girls interviewed (53 per cent) also reported incidents of sexual violence during their journey from Zamzam to Tawila.
Save the Children International has called for decisive diplomatic action to secure ceasefires in conflict-affected countries, following rising numbers of child deaths and injuries.
These include Gaza, where five children supported by the organisation and aged between six and 11 years have been killed and two others injured by Israeli airstrikes.
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“To states funding aid: children need more than your money. They need decisive diplomatic action and a ceasefire, and they need it now,” said Ahmad Alhendawi, the Regional Director for the Middle East, North Africa and Eastern Europe at Save the Children International on Saturday.
In Yemen, five children died five days ago after an unexploded ordnance detonated while they were playing football.
Beyond deaths, children continue to face life-threatening risks from conflict, including sexual violence, displacement, injury and hunger.
In Sudan, violence continues daily in North Darfur, the epicentre of the country’s two-year conflict, which has intensified over the past year and spiked further in April when the Zamzam camp, housing people forced from their homes, came under brutal attack.
“Nearly 500,000 people, including 260,000 children, were displaced from Zamzam camp between April and May, which amounts to 99 per cent of the camp’s population. Around 75 per cent of the displaced ended up in the Tawila camp, located about 60km south-east of Zamzam,” the organisation reported earlier this month.
Many children witnessed killings and dead bodies in the streets, with some reporting seeing young people arrested or killed. Over half of the girls interviewed (53 per cent) also reported incidents of sexual violence during their journey from Zamzam to Tawila.
“Children’s rights have been completely ignored in Sudan. They are being separated from their families, witnessing loved ones killed or maimed, and have already missed years of critical education, with terrible consequences for their long-term well-being. We are incredibly concerned for these children’s futures and for Sudan’s future if this conflict doesn’t end now,” said Francesco Lanino, Deputy Country Director of Programmes and Operations for Save the Children in Sudan.
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