A girl displaced by violence in Mosul at a UNICEF water distribution point in Dohuk. Photo: UNICEF, 2014, Othman
Around 500,000 people, up to half of them children, have been forced to flee their homes since violence erupted on 5 June in the Iraqi city of Mosul and the violence is spreading.
“We are extremely concerned about the children affected by this violence,” said Peter Power, Executive Director, UNICEF Ireland. “The situation is worsening by the minute. These children urgently need safe water, shelter, food and protection – they cannot wait.”
Thousands of children have taken refuge in schools, hospitals and mosques outside Mosul, many of them without adequate water, sanitation, or shelter from the scorching heat. Inside Mosul, Iraq’s second largest city, UNICEF has received reports that none of the five hospitals is functioning. Shops and markets are closed.
UNICEF is working with partners to meet the rapidly rising needs of displaced families and children, and of those who remain behind. Immediate priorities include safe drinking water, appropriate sanitation facilities, and emergency immunization so crucial to preventing the spread of diseases, including polio, which has re-appeared in Iraq this year, and measles.
UNICEF’s emergency appeal for Iraq even before the violence erupted last week was only 16 per cent funded. The rapidly deepening crisis will greatly increase the need for humanitarian assistance and funding.
“This is an emergency on top of an emergency in Iraq – coming on the heels of other internal displacements of children and families in Anbar, as well as Syrian refugees in the north,” said Marzio Babille, UNICEF Representative in Iraq.
#Water distribution for #Mosul displaced families at checkpoint entering #Dohuk. #Iraq pic.twitter.com/9cAzyOHmKN
— UNICEF MENA (@UNICEFmena) June 11, 2014
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