IRAQ CURRENT SITUATION UNICEF PROGRAMS REPORTS FROM THE FIELD ABOUT IRAQ NEWS RELEASES AUDIO / VIDEO

	LATEST: On the Tragedy in Iraq (news release)
	Over 200 UNICEF national staff members continue working in Iraq to ensure that children are protected, fed, and have access to clean water.
	Almost half of Iraq's total population is aged under 18. One in eight Iraqi children die before their fifth birthday.
	UNICEF has appealed for $182.7 million to support urgent humanitarian aid for Iraqi children and women at risk. Watch a video (1:39; REAL or WINDOWS) about UNICEF's Iraq emergency preparations.

The children of Iraq have been caught up in war for the third time in 20 years. Although a clear picture of the impact of the fighting on civilians has yet to emerge, UNICEF is deeply concerned by the deteriorating conditions facing children in the country.

Almost half of Iraq's total population is aged under 18. Even before the conflict began, many children were highly vulnerable to disease and malnutrition. One in four children aged under five is chronically malnourished. One in eight die before their fifth birthday.

Overcoming extraordinarily difficult circumstances, UNICEF staff are working now to help meet the needs of Iraq's children.

Emergency Supplies Delivered
Since the end of the war, UNICEF has delivered thousands of tons of supplies. These include emergency medical and water supplies, as well as high-protein food for malnourished children and medicines targeting serious outbreaks of water-borne diseases among children. UNICEF tankers have supplied millions of gallons of water to southern Iraq, repaired water treatment plants, and supplied millions of dollars worth of water treatment chemicals.

Iraq's situation is unique in many ways. An eight-year war with Iran in the 1980s and the Gulf War in 1991 greatly damaged Iraq's infrastructure. The country was under comprehensive United Nations sanctions for 12 years. However, the Oil for Food Program, passed by the Security Council in late 1996, helped to reduce the impact of sanctions on the population by allowing the Iraqi government to sell oil and use the revenue to purchase humanitarian supplies. On May 22, 2003, the Security Council adopted Resolution 1483 lifting civilian sanctions on Iraq and phasing out the Oil-for-Food Program over the next six months.

UNICEF has been working to improve the situation of children and women in Iraq since 1952 and has had a permanent presence in the country since 1983. It plays a leading role in helping to fulfill the fundamental rights of children and women, working in the areas of education, health, nutrition, water and environmental sanitation, child protection, and women's rights.