DUBLIN/DAMASCUS, Fri 14 Oct 2016 “Yesterday’s attack near the Hatem Al Taai primary school in Aleppo, Syria killed four children and injured three others. The children were on their way to school in the morning hours when mortars hit the area.
“This deadly attack comes only three days after five children were killed inside their school in Dara’a city. In Syria, even going to school is dangerous.
“In the city of Aleppo, daily indiscriminate attacks on populated areas kill and injure scores of children. Those who survive, are witnessing gruesome violence that no child should ever see, leaving them with lifelong physical and psychological scars.
“Nothing justifies killing children.
“UNICEF calls on all parties to the conflict to protect civilians and stop attacks on civilian infrastructure including schools and education facilities in accordance with their obligations under international humanitarian law.
Children should be protected at all times”.
UNICEF Ireland Executive Director Peter Power added his voice: ”Those responsible for ordering these airstrikes are clearly doing so in the knowledge that completely innocent children will die. That is something that saddens me deeply. Every day children are being killed. I beg those in a position of power to respect the rights of children.
“We are also worried for our staff on the ground and call on those who would perpetrate violence to prioritise the safety of aid workers.”
ENDS
FOR EDITORS
UNICEF Ireland Executive Director Peter Power is available for interview.
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For more information, please contact:
Aedín Donnelly, Communications and Media Manager for UNICEF Ireland | aedin@unicef.ie Tel: +353 1 809 0281 | Mob: +353 85 1395272
Shushan Mebrahtu, UNICEF Syria, +963 992 892 864, shmebrahtu@unicef.org
Juliette Touma, UNICEF Regional Office, +962 79 867 4628, jtouma@unicef.org
