UN: Nearly 40% of Syrians are in need of assistance

A senior United Nations humanitarian official reported today that the total number of people in need of assistance in Syria has reached 8.3 million, or 38 percent of the country's population, as the civil war entered into its third year. The figure includes some 6.8 million in need inside the country and 1.5 million fled violence to neighbouring countries, said Panos Moumtzis, regional coordinator for Syrian refugees for the UNHCR, UN's top refugee agency. "UNHCR is now very much worried about the coming summer months and in particular the increase in temperatures and the associated health problems linked to water and sanitation," he stated. The UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) said Tuesday it is extremely concerned about the safety of civilians in the embattled Syrian city of Qusayr and fears that thousands of children and women could be trapped there by fighting. UNICEF said it feared between 12,000 and 20,000 people, many of them children, are thought to still be inside the city. According to the UN, more than 80,000 people have been killed since the uprising began in March 2011.