Up to 100,000 children are in danger as Iraqi forces battle to retake west Mosul from the Islamic State jihadist group, the United Nations children’s agency UNICEF says.
Nearly eight months into the massive operation to recapture Iraq’s second city, security forces have retaken all but a handful of areas in west Mosul from the jihadists. But those areas are still home to large numbers of civilians in grave danger from the fighting as well as from a lack of food, medicine and clean water.
An Iraqi soldier helps a displaced girl after leaving their homes west of Mosul on May 26, 2017, as government forces continue their offensive to retake the city of Mosul from Islamic State (IS) group fighters. (AFP/Karim Sahib)
“An estimated 100,000 girls and boys remain in extremely dangerous conditions in the Old City and other areas of west Mosul. Many are caught in the crossfire, and hospitals and other medical facilities have reportedly come under attack,” UNICEF says in a statement.
The UN body says it has received reports of civilians including children being killed in west Mosul, some of them as they sought to flee.
— AFP
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