UNICEF warns of 'catastrophic' child malnutrition due to Russia-Ukraine war

As the Russia-Ukraine war continues to escalate, with Ukrainian troops fulfilling their "combat mission" in the port city of Mariupol and the Kremlin's troops relentlessly invading territories in eastern and southern Ukraine, it has come to the fore that the ongoing war is slowly pushing the world into a crisis-like situation, including a major shortage of food grains.

The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) has warned that at least 6 lakh children could be left under acute malnutrition and devoid of basic life-saving treatment globally due to the ongoing war in Eastern Europe.

Taking to Twitter, UNICEF chief Catherine Russell wrote, "There is simply no reason why a child should suffer from severe wasting – not when we have the ability to prevent it. But there is precious little time to reignite a global effort to prevent, detect, and treat malnutrition before a bad situation gets much, much worse. "

"The price of lifesaving ready-to-use therapeutic food (RUTF) is projected to soar in the coming months, placing even more children's lives at risk," UNICEF said.

The Children's Authority further warned in a statement that with increasing pressures on food security, including climate change, the price hike could lead to "catastrophic" levels of severe malnutrition. "The world is rapidly becoming a virtual powder keg of preventable deaths among children and children suffering from waste," said UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell.

Children killed in Ukraine

According to reports, more than 500 children have been killed or injured since the Kremlin ordered its "special military operation" in Ukraine. Earlier, UNICEF had said that more than 5 million have been displaced internally or externally amid the war.

Meanwhile, invading Russian troops have been accused of child abuse, kidnapping, and cruel activities against girls and women.

(Image: AP)