BAGHDAD, 1 March (IRIN) - The United Nations and NGOs have strongly condemned the continued apparent targeting of children in Iraq's bloody sectarian violence. The latest mass killing of
children occurred on Tuesday when, according to Iraqi state television, 18 boys were killed by a car bomb in the Sunni insurgent stronghold of Ramadi, capital of Anbar province and some 155 km west of
Baghdad. The boys were getting ready to play football. It was not immediately known if the children were the intended targets in the Ramadi bombings, but it would not be the first time that children
were killed playing football in Iraq. Last August, 12 boys and young men were blown apart on a football pitch in Baghdad. Hundreds if not thousands of Iraqi children have been killed, either
directly or indirectly, since the US-led invasion of the country began in 2003. In July 2005, a suicide bombing in Baghdad killed 27 people, including 18 children and an US soldier. On 25
February, more than 40 people, mostly college students, were killed by a female suicide bomber outside a mostly Shia college in Baghdad. On Tuesday, the UN children's agency (UNICEF) called for
priority attention to be paid to the needs of Iraqi children, saying the "loss of so many innocent children is unacceptable". "Iraq's recreational areas, as well as its schools, must be respected
and protected as safe havens where children can play and learn without fear," Roger Wright, UNICEF Representative for Iraq, said in a statement. "Children's lives, health and psychological
well-being are increasingly suffering as a result of Iraq's ongoing conflict and displacement," Wright added. "Protecting and supporting Iraqi children must be the first responsibility of everyone, no
matter what the circumstances." Cedric Turlan, information officer for the NGO Coordination Committee in Iraq (NCCI), told IRIN he was saddened by the recent bombing of young boys and hoped that the
children were not the intended targets although "whether they were the targets or not doesn't change the terrible result". "In central Iraq, all Iraqis are vulnerable and affected by the violence
and the humanitarian crisis today. Unfortunately, among the affected population, the more fragile are often also the most vulnerable. "Everybody - Iraqis and the international community - should
stand to denounce this violence and should work to protect the rights of the affected population, particularly children," Turlan added sm/ar/ed
