As the horrendous civil war in Syria drags on, the children of the country suffer the physical and mental consequences.
This all became even more clear when a 5-year-old boy, Omran Daqneesh, was pictured in the back of an ambulance after being discovered by authorities—and quickly went viral. A tweet of the photo by Telegraph reporter Raf Sanchez has more than 18,000 retweets.
Doctor in #Aleppo just sent this photo of a dazed child who survived an airstrike pic.twitter.com/IHLDc6KPh8
— Raf Sanchez (@rafsanchez) August 17, 2016
Daqneesh, along with five other boys, was injured after an aerial attack, according to the Telegraph. He is covered in dirt and blood, and is seemingly unware of it all as he sits in the back of the ambulance awaiting medical help. He was later released from the hospital after suffering head injuries and cuts.
This graphic picture and video of Omran speaks to the devastation that Syria and its residents, both adult and children, face every day—driving home the real human consequences of a conflict that can feel incredibly far away to many of us. The fact that there are many more Omran Daqneeshs that we’ll never see is the most devastating part of it all. And while countries sit and debate what exactly it is that can be done to help the people of Syria, more people die and more children, like Omran, are injured.
Three other people were killed in the attack that injured Omran, which also injured at least eight other women and children.
In April, according to Al Jazeera, UN Special Enoy Staffan de Mistura said that an estimated 400,000 people have died in the Syrian civil war. This incredibly large number is indicative of a need for help from other countries, and it’s unfortunate that the topic is still up for debate in so many nations.
As countries debate whether or not is is viable to accept Syrian refugees, more lives are devastated and ruined through this unimaginable violence. But you can help if you feel compelled to. UNICEF is accepting donations to help children in Syria, as are a number of other charitiable organizations.
Through it all, there’s hope that the viral picture of Omran will spark a better understanding of why assistance to the people of Syria is so incredibly vital, as the longer the debate of what to do goes on, the worse the situation gets.