Statement attributable to Geert Cappelaere, UNICEF Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa
DAMASCUS/AMMAN, 16 November 2018 – “UNICEF is alarmed by recent reports of up to 30 children who have been killed in recent violence in Al Shafa village, in eastern Syria. “These reported killings demonstrate that the war on children is far from over in Syria. “In almost eight years of war, the fundamental principle of protection of children has been completely disregarded, with disastrous consequences for children everywhere in Syria. “Between January and September 2018, the United Nations has verified the killing of 870 children – the highest number ever in the first nine months of any year since the start of the conflict in 2011. These are only verified cases, with actual numbers likely to be much higher. “UNICEF calls on warring parties to protect all children – no matter where they are in Syria and no matter whose control they live under.”
Notes for editors:
Multimedia materials available here: https://weshare.unicef.org/Package/2AM4080EBUGC
Find out more about UNICEF's work in Syria here: www.unicef.org/syriancrisis For more information please contact:
Tamara Kummer, UNICEF MENA Regional Office, +962 797 588 550 tkummer@unicef.org Salam Al-Janabi, UNICEF Syria, +963 9500 44371 sabdulnumem@unicef.org Joe English, UNICEF New York, +1 917 893 0692 jenglish@unicef.org