A/HRC/25/46 B. Children’s access to health care in times of armed conflict 74. Armed conflict has a dramatic impact on children’s lives. The wounds are not only physical, but also psychological, emotional and social. Being a victim of violence, living in constant fear, and experiencing extreme hardship, such as lack of shelter and medical treatment, can cause severe physical and mental suffering with devastating long-term consequences. 75. Armed conflict is a major public health hazard, and this is often overlooked. Tens of thousands of children die every year as a direct result of fighting. Furthermore, children die from malnutrition and disease caused or accentuated by armed conflicts. In many instances, conflict kills and injures more children than soldiers. Health professionals are crucial advocates for the rights of the child. Humanitarian and human rights organizations, including the World Health Organization, Physicians for Human Rights, the Centre for Victims of Torture, and the Safeguarding Health in Conflict Coalition, actively advocate for the right of children to have access to medical care, especially in times of armed conflict. 76. Realities on the ground in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Syrian Arab Republic and Yemen indicate that patients, medical facilities, workers and ambulances are increasingly being targets of attack. This is a direct violation of the rules and customs enshrined in international humanitarian law, and is happening in many conflicts around the world. Both the recent initiative by the International Committee of the Red Cross, entitled Health Care in Danger, and the recent report by the Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health (A/68/297), have emphasized that the provision of medical care has come to the centre stage of armed conflict, and is increasingly under attack. 77. Hospitals that remain operational during conflict are often looted or forced to close down for one or another reason. They run out of medical supplies. Military personnel stay close by, or set up check points near hospitals. Medical personnel are sometimes threatened and forced to withdraw medical care from patients. In some cases, health services are diverted to satisfy military needs. Attacks on hospitals, health workers and patients strike at the heart of protection of children affected by armed conflict. Health services save and sustain lives. Health services are crucial in order to meet the needs of children in conflict situations. Hospitals should have no part in warfare. 78. Unfortunately, this principle stands in sharp contrast to reality. The civil war in the Syrian Arab Republic is a tragic example that demonstrates how the strongest principles of humanity can be trampled on by warfare. A recent report by the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic dealing with the issue of medical care has illustrated how the deliberate targeting of hospitals, medical personnel and transport, the denial of access to medical care, and ill-treatment of the sick and wounded have become some of the most alarming features of the Syrian conflict. Violence against health care workers has a significant compound effect, which causes dramatic increases in the mortality rate of patients. The breakdown of medical services disproportionately affects the most vulnerable segment of the population, especially children, nursing mothers and the disabled. 79. These incidents are of grave concern, and constitute a complete disregard for the special status of medical facilities, persons and functions, and a failure to protect the civilian population, including children. Concerted action by the international community is needed in order to highlight and tackle this issue, by strengthening the engagement of Member States, the United Nations, humanitarian and human rights organizations, civil society partners, the global health community, and above all, the parties to conflict. Medical professionals in neighbouring countries also need support, in order to respond to the urgent medical needs of persons fleeing conflict, the majority of whom are women and children. 16