UNICEF issues urgent humanitarian call for Iraqi children

“The humanitarian situation has deteriorated for all Iraqi children – both inside Iraq and in neighboring countries hosting refugees. In the last year alone conditions have eroded significantly and today nearly two million people have fled their homes inside Iraq and are thus internally displaced,” Toole told donor governments gathered at a UNHCR conference in Geneva dedicated to the humanitarian needs of Iraqi refugees and displaced people. Another two million – half of them children – are seeking refuge in a handful of neighboring countries.
While conditions for children were considered fragile but stable one year ago, now escalating violence prevents many from attending school. Access to safe water and other basic social services continues to decline due to insecurity, population movement, the loss of skilled workers and the weakening of vital infrastructure. Combined, these factors have created an increasing problem of child malnutrition. Furthermore, the risk of major disease outbreaks grows daily. Immunization rates are dropping as a result of the decline in security. Access to safe water is reaching a crisis point and diarrhoea outbreaks in the summer months are a real danger. read more ►

IRIN: Thousands without food and supplies due to failing distribution system
IRIN: Thousands missing since war began