A total of 3.7 million children who survived the February 6 earthquakes in Syria face “a variety of growing and potentially catastrophic threats,” UNICEF’s executive director warned on Thursday after a two-day visit to the country.
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) emphasized this in a statement on Thursday “the emotional and psychological impact that earthquakes have on children, a growing threat of infectious diseases, transmitted by direct contact and waterborne among displaced families, and the lack of access to basic services for families already left vulnerable by nearly 12 years of conflict. the risk of creating ongoing and exacerbating catastrophes for the affected children”.
“The children of Syria have already suffered unspeakable horror and grief (and) now these earthquakes (recorded in the north of the country) and aftershocks have destroyed not only more homes, schools and places where children played, but also the sense of security for so many of the most vulnerable children and families” said the executive director of that specialized UN agency, Catherine Russell.
In Aleppo, the responsible met children in a temporary learning space, where more than 250 living in collective shelters have access to education, health care and recreational activities, the statement said.
At a mosque in Al Masharqa, according to the note, Catherine Russell also spoke with Esraa, a mother of two girls whose husband disappeared during the war, who is raising her 10- and 11-year-old daughters alone and one of thousands of people who lost their homes as due to earthquakes. The three spent two nights in the cold and rain before finding shelter in the mosque and are now receiving funding from UNICEF. “During the second earthquake, which happened a week ago, my daughter passed out from fear and stress”Esraa reported to Catherine Russell, adding that when asked what she wanted, one of the girls, Jana, said all she wanted was a house and a bed.
Russell also went to a UNICEF-backed water station that supplies drinking water to about two-thirds of the neighborhoods in the city of Aleppo, the UN agency’s statement said. “With more families currently displaced and living in poor conditions in temporary shelters, permanent access to safe water and sanitation is critical to prevent outbreaks of diseases such as scabies, lice, cholera and acute diarrhoea”.
The organization also indicated that it has already reached more than 400,000 earthquake-affected people in northwestern Syria with food, water, sanitation and hygiene products. to reach children and families within the first 48 hours after the first earthquake.
In all, UNICEF has so far had to send truckloads of humanitarian supplies to support more than 1.8 million people in communities across northwestern Syria. “It is not enough to simply provide immediate assistance – we must commit to supporting these families for the long term and helping them regain a sense of stability and hope”defended Catherine Russell. “By providing access to essential services such as clean water, healthcare and psychosocial support, we can help children and families heal from the terrible experiences they have endured so that they can rebuild their lives.”insisted.
According to the statement, UNICEF in Syria needs $172.7 million (approximately $163 million at current exchange rates) to immediately provide essential assistance to 5.4 million people, including 2.6 million children, affected by the earthquake.
This has been specified by the specialized UN agency “Aid will be delivered in areas of high impact, using all possible modalities, both in Syria and through cross-border operations in Turkey” – country where earthquakes devastated the south of the territory and claimed more than 40,000 lives.
UNICEF also believes it is essential that support be flexible so that it and its partners can respond based on needs and wherever children are affected, the note also says.
With regard to Turkey, the organization launched a call to raise $196 million (approximately €185 million) to reach three million people, including 1.5 million children, with essential goods, namely drinking water and sanitation and toiletries; health and nutrition; child protection; of Education; and cash humanitarian aid aimed at helping vulnerable children.
Source: DN
