United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) estimates that some 35,000 children have escaped from Mosul since mid-October, when the Iraqi army launched a major offensive to retake the northern city from ISIS.

    "Children are the innocent victims of any conflict and in this conflict are the most innocent victims," Peter Hawkins, the UNICEF Representative in Iraq, said in statement.

    He further expressed concern over the mental situation of the displaced Iraqi kids, saying that "they're not smiling, they're sad." Once ISIS is forced out of Mosul, it will be important to "invest in children's services so this war doesn't continue," Hawkins added.

    The official did not provide the exact number of the children killed, but he said some of them had been targeted by snipers.

Source: QNA