යේමනයේ දරුවන් 600,000කට උග්‍ර මන්දපෝෂණ

Children in war-torn Yemen suffer from malnutrition

As the world marks International Children's Day on Saturday, Yemeni children are suffering from hunger, malnutrition and disease in the war-torn country.

According to a report released by the United Nations in May this year, Yemen currently has 600,000 children suffering from severe acute malnutrition, which poses an imminent threat to their lives if they do not receive timely and proper treatment.

Over the past 40 years, the prevalence of stunting among children in Yemen has remained above 10 percent, which is higher than the global average during the same period.

"According to our observations, there has been a continuous increase in severe acute malnutrition among children in recent years, which is closely related to the rising poverty rates caused by wars and blockades over the past decade. Particularly, the recent rising temperature in Hodeidah has led to dehydration and increased hospital admissions among children. The majority of these children also suffer from severe acute malnutrition," said Awsan Al-Absi, pediatrician and malnutrition treatment physician at Al-Thawra Hospital Authority.

Frequent power outages have exacerbated the situation, leaving locals unable to operate their cooling devices.

"The high temperatures have a significant impact on children, causing a decline in their appetite and resulting in dehydration. Compounded by their parents' inability to provide sufficient nourishment, this has led to malnutrition among the children," said Fouad Mashhour, a pediatric and nutrition specialist in Hodeidah.

Officials said that Yemeni children are struggling for survival due to food scarcity, limited healthcare resources, halted vaccinations, inadequate access to clean water, and a lack of education.

"There are 48 percent of the children under five are stunted, and that is of big concern, that means their cognitive and their physical development will be affected over time," said Peter Hawkins, UNICEF Representative in Yemen.

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