Quarter of Rohingya Children Fleeing Violence Are Acutely Malnourished

Nearly 25 percent of Rohingya children under the age of five who recently fled Myanmar are suffering from acute life-threatening malnutrition, the United Nations said, AFP reported. 

RELATED:
Myanmar Could Be Responsible For Genocide Against Rohingya: UN

Bangladesh's UNICEF head, Edouard Beigbeder said that "our worst fears have been confirmed." 

"Refugee children who have already endured unimaginable suffering in fleeing their homes are now facing a public health crisis," he added. 

Three health and nutrition surveys conducted by the UN children's agency between October 22 and November 27 showed up to 25 percent of the young children crammed into Bangladeshi refugee camps have acute malnutrition and other maladies. 

"Nearly half the children surveyed have anemia, up to 40 percent have diarrhea, and up to 60 percent have acute respiratory infections," UNICEF spokesman, Christophe Boulierac told reporters in Geneva, according to AFP. 

On November 3, UNICEF warned that 7.5 percent of the children in one of the camps in Bangladesh's Cox's Bazar district were at risk of dying from acute malnutrition. 

Over 655,000 members from the minority Rohingya community have fled  Myanmar's Rakhine state since late August following the brutal military operations, described by the UN as "textbook example of ethnic cleansing." 

And nearly half of those who fled are children.

New surveys at the Kutupalong and Nayapara refugee camps, as well as other make-shift settlements, that included more than 1,700 children, highlighted the worsening situation.

"Less than 16 percent of children are consuming a minimally acceptable diet," UNICEF said.

UN rights chief Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein said earlier this week that Myanmar clearly "planned" violent attacks on the minority community, resulting in a mass exodus, and a possible "genocide." 

Amnesty International has also urged the Human Rights Council to pass a "strong resolution that sends a clear message to Myanmar's government and military that their abhorrent treatment of the Rohingya must end immediately."