Dec 29, 2024, 3:57 AM
Journalist ID: 5537
News ID: 85703538
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UNICEF: 2024 'one of the worst years in history' for children

Dec 29, 2024, 3:57 AM
News ID: 85703538
UNICEF: 2024 'one of the worst years in history' for children

Tehran, IRNA- The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), in its annual report, has painted a grim picture for children affected by conflicts, declaring 2024 as one of the worst years for children in the world.

“Over 473 million children—more than one in six globally—now live in areas affected by conflict, with the world experiencing the highest number of conflicts since World War II”, according to a review by UNICEF of the latest available data and prevailing global trends published on the agency’s website on Saturday

UNICEF announced that the above figure is the highest recorded in the history of the organization and indicates a significant increase in the number of children who have been forced to leave their homes due to conflicts.

According to the report of this international organization, “the percentage of the world’s children living in conflict zones has doubled—from around 10 per cent in the 1990s to almost 19 per cent today.”

By the end of 2023, 47.2 million children had been displaced due to conflict and violence, with trends in 2024 indicating additional displacement due to the intensification of conflicts, including in Haiti, Lebanon, Myanmar, the State of Palestine, and Sudan, UNICEF said.

UNICEF: 2024 'one of the worst years in history' for children

Referring to 33,000 recorded acts of violence against children in 2023, it wrote: This figure is the highest in the history of UNICEF, which is likely to increase in 2024, given the ongoing war in Gaza and Ukraine.

 “By almost every measure, 2024 has been one of the worst years on record for children in conflict in UNICEF’s history—both in terms of the number of children affected and the level of impact on their lives,” said UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell.

“A child growing up in a conflict zone is far more likely to be out of school, malnourished, or forced from their home—too often repeatedly—compared to a child living in places of peace”, he added.

Some media reports pointed to the martyrdom of more than 17,000 children during the approximately 15 months of the Israeli regime's genocidal war on Gaza, with Al Jazeera quoted UNICEF spokesperson Rosalia Bolen as saying: 96 percent of women and children in Gaza cannot meet their vital food needs, and children suffer from illness and lack of winter clothing.

On Friday, the UNICEF spokesperson called for the use of diplomatic leverage and political influence to evacuate wounded Gazan children and their parents from Gaza for treatment in al-Quds or elsewhere.

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