1.2M Yemeni children live in conflict zones: UNICEF

AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): Around 1.2 million Yemeni children live in conflict zones in war-battered Yemen, the UN children's agency UNICEF said Monday.

The children "continue to live in 31 active conflict zones including Al-Hudaydah, Taiz, Hajjah and Saada - in areas witnessing heavy, war-related violence," Geert Cappelaere UNICEF Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa, said in a statement.

"Not enough has changed for children in Yemen since the Stockholm agreement on 13 December 2018," the official said.

On December 13, Yemeni peace talks held in Sweden concluded with a ceasefire deal in Al-Hudaydah.

"Every day since, eight children have been killed or injured. Most of the children killed were playing outdoors with their friends or were on their way to or from school," Cappelaere said.

"Once again, UNICEF calls on all warring parties to put an end to violence in hotspots and across all of Yemen, protect civilians, keep children out of harm’s way and allow humanitarian deliveries to children and their families wherever they are in the country," he said.

Saudi Arabia and a number of its regional allies launched a devastating campaign against Yemen in March 2015, with the aim of bringing the government of former Yemeni President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi back to power and crushing the Ansarullah movement.

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