UAE | General
UAE steps up Gaza relief efforts on War Orphans day
What was once her home has been torn down and her scant belongings have been scattered across the ground. She weeps as an airplane flies past her house. The war has robbed her of everything she had - home, warmth, food and her favourite toys.
- By Huda Tabrez, Community Journalist
- Published: 23:35 January 5, 2009
- Image Credit:
- Children have borne the brunt of conflicts worldwide. In Gaza, Israel's brutal air attacks have left children orphaned and dead.
Dubai: What was once her home has been torn down and her scant belongings have been scattered across the ground. She weeps as an airplane flies past her house. The war has robbed her of everything she had - home, warmth, food and her favourite toys.
It is not these she weeps for. She weeps because she is now an orphan. She weeps because she had no one to comfort her after her world crashed around her.
Today is a day to reach out to her as well as countless other war orphans across the world, especially as the world witnesses Gaza being attacked mercilessly. January 6 is the day marked by the world as War Orphans day.
Many organisations across the UAE have been providing relief to war orphans in areas of conflict. However, with the ongoing strikes in Gaza, they have swung into full action to reach out to the victims.
SOS Children's Villages, the world's largest private child-care organisation, is currently assisting around one million beneficiaries, according to its project coordinator Maleka Dahlouk.
"Our villages provide the support and help children in need when they are affected by war. We are also providing children in Gaza with psycho-social support along with the medical and financial assistance they require," Maleka said.
Related Links
- Brown calls for ceasefire in Gaza
- Gaza children pay the price
- Israel aims to control key areas
- Israel rebuffs calls for observers
- Iran and Bahrain call for oil as weapon
- Israel presses on with Gaza attack
- Muslim states seek UN session
- Sarkozy heads to Mideast for talks
- Sarkozy calls for Gaza ceasefire
- Air raids hinder relief operation
The United Nations Children's Fund (Unicef) is also working to provide relief to children in Gaza as it seeks to adhere to its principles as outlined in the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
Relief
Children's Hope Foundation (CHF) is another organisation that works for the benefit of war orphans.
Based in the UAE, the organisation provides relief to children orphaned by wars in Sierra Leone and Afghanistan, among other countries, by coordinating efforts with organisations around the world.
Do you know of a war orphan? What did you do to mark the World Day for War Orphans? How can more efforts be mobilised to help children affected by war?
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