Yemen war a ‘living hell’ for children, warns UNICEF

A representative for the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) says the ongoing conflict in Yemen has made the impoverished Arab country a “living hell” for children.  

A representative for the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) says the ongoing conflict in Yemen has made the impoverished Arab country a “living hell” for children.  

Meritxell Relano said on Thursday that more than 11 million children were facing the threat of food shortages, disease, displacement and acute lack of access to basic social services.

“The conflict has made Yemen a living hell for its children,” Relano said. “An estimated 1.8 million children are malnourished in the country. Nearly 400,000 of them are severely acute malnourished and they are fighting for their lives every day.”

According to Relano, UNICEF has provided over 244,000 severely malnourished children with therapeutic treatment since the beginning of 2018, in addition to micronutrient treatment to over 317,000 children under five.