"As fighting and violence escalate across Syria, we risk losing the opportunity to vaccinate and save the lives of more than one million children," WHO Regional Director Dr. Ala Alwan and UNICEF Regional Director Dr. Peter Salama warned in a joint statement on Wednesday.
Similar reports were received from other areas in Syria, further jeopardizing the vaccination campaign, the health chiefs noted.
"On 1 June, a UNICEF supported clinic in the city of Aleppo was hit, injuring over 40 people among them a pregnant woman who lost her baby," Alwan and Salama stated.
Since the beginning of 2016, there have been reports of attacks on 17 health care facilities across Syria. Only one third of hospitals currently function in the country, the joint statement noted.
"Attacks on health facilities are increasing in frequency and scale. Such attacks are blatant violations of International Humanitarian Law. Health workers, patients and health facilities must be protected, and civilians allowed unrestricted access to urgently needed health services," the statement maintained.
WHO and UNICEF appealed to all parties involved in the conflict in Syria to end the violence, so that health workers could resume the vaccination campaign in safety, Alwan and Salama added.
