West Bank children 'just want peace'
20/04/2007
A UN official is urging more to be done to protect children who are caught up in conflict in war-torn Israel.
Radhika Coomaraswamy, the UN secretary general's special representative for children and armed conflict, said that more youngsters needed to be protected from the ensuing violence.
She added that after visiting the region she had found the situation there worse than she had expected and that she was struck by the children's "sense of hopelessness and despair".
Ms Coomaraswamy had spent time with youngsters from the Askar refugee camp in the West Bank which has been hit by numerous missiles from the Gaza Strip.
"I have been in other regions where the conflict has been terrible but the children were more resilient and playful. Here they were less so, particularly in the Palestinian refugee camps," she said.
"Children are getting very hard and bitter through this experience," she added.
Mr Coomaraswamy also said that after talking to the children both Palestinian and Israeli she concluded that all they wanted was peace: "I hope that the voices of the children will be heard and we will move towards peace."
Young people across the region are struggling to cope with the violent situation which is affecting all areas of their lives.
Many are unable to go to school, or fear being injured when attempting to travel there, while others are unable to reach health services.
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