A leading charity warns two million Syrian children have had their lives torn apart, as the Prince of Wales, on a visit to a Jordanian refugee camp, describes their plight as “heartbreaking”.
In a new report, Save the Children described Syria’s children as the “forgotten victims”, and warned that they are at constant risk of malnutrition, disease, trauma and, in the case of girls, being married off at a young age in a bid to protect them from burgeoning sexual violence.
Ahead of talks starting in London today between Foreign Secretary William Hague and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov, which are likely to be dominated by the conflict, the charity urged the international community to push for an end to the violence that has torn Syria apart.
Jasmine Whitbread, Save the Children’s international chief executive, said: “For millions of Syrian children, the innocence of childhood has been replaced by the cruel realities of trying to survive this vicious war. Many are now living rough, struggling to find enough to eat, without the right medicine if they become sick or injured.
“As society has broken down, in the worst cases, hunger, homelessness and terror have replaced school for some of these young people. We cannot allow this to continue unchecked; the lives of too many children are at stake.”
The Prince of Wales described the plight of Syrian refugees as “heartbreaking” as he toured a Jordanian camp near the border of the civil war torn nation.
The prince and the Duchess of Cornwall were greeted by United Nations staff at the King Abdullah Park camp, which is home to just under 1,000 people who have fled the two-year-old conflict.
Speaking at the refugee camp HQ, Charles said he had been struck by the generosity of the Jordanian people.
“Many of these children have been traumatised by the horrors of what they’ve witnessed before they got here,” he said.
Save the Children’s report Childhood Under Fire, launched to mark two years of fighting in the Middle Eastern country that has claimed 70,000 lives, says many children are struggling to find enough to eat.
Thousands are living in barns, parks and caves and are unable to go to school because teachers have fled and schools have been attacked. Young boys are also being used by armed groups as porters, runners and human shields, bringing them dangerously close to the frontline, it warns.
The report, which includes research carried out amongst refugee children by Bahcesehir University in Turkey, says one in three children reported having been hit, kicked or shot at during the conflict.
Three in every four Syrian children interviewed had lost a loved one because of the fighting. Children are being killed and maimed too, it warned, including by the indiscriminate use of shells, mortars and rockets. Thousands face malnutrition as food production is crippled and damage to sanitation systems has raised the risk of disease, it says.
Girls are being married off early to ensure that they have someone who can protect them from sex attacks. And fuel prices have risen by up to 500%, leaving families struggling during the winter.