SOMALIA: Indiscriminate Shelling Kills Children
According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs’ “Situation Reports” (No. 30, 01 Aug 2008):
More than 150 children have been killed or injured through indiscriminate shelling, bombings and crossfire in the past year. In a press statement issued on 31 July, Christian Balslev-Olesen, UNICEF Representative to Somalia, said, ‘the current environment of conflict, displacement and insecurity in Southern and Central Somalia has a serious negative impact on children’s and young people’s long-term psychosocial welfare and health development.’ During the reporting week alone, seven children died in the ongoing battles in Mogadishu - five as they were fleeing from school and two while they were playing football on a public pitch. UNICEF called on the parties involved in the conflict to respect International Humanitarian Law, safeguard the rights of children, prioritise their welfare and safety, and seek solutions to increase humanitarian access.