Homs province: infants of Rastan town have no milk

Translation by Yusra Ahmed

(Zaman Al  Wasl- Eqtsad)- Ritaj Shmier, an 8-month-old Syrian girl suffers of malabsorption disease since birth, therefore, she needs special formula of milk, which is unaffordable by her family as the price of one tin of milk is more than 2450 syrian pound. In this, Ritaj joins the group of 1650 children in Al Rastan deprived of their basic food as a result of the inhuman siege imposed on Rastan.

“Mother and Child care office” is one of the relief agencies which work to save the children of Rastan. The agency tries to provides the essential needs of children in the city that was one of the first Syrian cities to join the Syrian revolution. 

Maha Ayoob, Director of the Child and Mother Office said to “Eqtsad” that almost nothing available in Rasten under the severe siege for more than 4 years as it became too hard for people to provide the most basic requirements for living, including milk for their children. “because of that, me and my friends thought of establishing the mother and child care office to help in securing free milk for children of Rasran and help them to stay alive during this critical time of their lives. 

“However recently it has become difficult for the office to provide this essential food for feeding the children and for their growth or even afford financial support to buy it” added.

Ayoub pointed out that the office had launched several appeals across social media and networks, print and audio-visual media in order to alert the world to the suffering in providing the milk for children, and to find supports in this case, especially with the lack of a specific mechanism to provide milk as a result of the siege. The number of children and infants who registered in Child care office in Rastan city alone reached to 1650, they are in need for milk , the number in the countryside is almost similar. 

In regard to alternatives for milk powder and what mothers do to provide milk to their infants if they were not able to breastfeed, which sometimes become difficult because women cannot produce breast milk because of lack of nutrients and stress. Maha Ayoub mentioned that many women were forced to give their under-6-month old children the animals’ milk although it is not suitable to them and not clean and sometimes contaminated.

Maha Ayoub noted other difficulties in providing the needs of children as well as for milk, including the Children nappies, clean water, vaccines and means of heating especially in the winter.

Mother and Child care office relies on donors and charitable people besides Wafa association, the Turkish Committee for relief of Homs. There is no other relief organizations or institutions specialized in providing milk for babies according to the office’s director.

Ayoub directed her words to organizations concern in children affairs, especially UNICEF saying: “Our children are facing disability and death every moment because of bombings, hunger and poverty, and you are not interested in them, despite of our repeated humanity calls”