The United Nations Children’s Fund on Tuesday issued a blank statement protesting the mass casualties among children during the ongoing conflict in Syria. At least 100 people, including 20 children were killed on Monday when forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad bombarded the Eastern Ghouta enclave near the Capital Damascus.
“No words will do justice to the children killed, their mothers, their fathers and their loved ones,” Unicef Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa Geert Cappelaere began. This was followed by ten empty lines with quote marks indicating missing text.
“Unicef is issuing this blank statement,” the explainer at the bottom of the statement read. “We no longer have the words to describe children’s suffering and our outrage. Do those inflicting the suffering still have words to justify their barbaric acts?”
More than 300 civilians were injured in air raids and artillery fire on Eastern Ghouta on Monday. Medical organisations said at least four clinics and hospitals, including a maternity centre, were bombed. Around 4,00,000 people are besieged inside Eastern Ghouta.
Rami Abdel Rahman, head of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said that the Syrian government forces targeted mainly residential areas on Monday.
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