Disease claims dozens trying to flee IS-controlled area in Syria

Disease and harsh conditions have claimed the lives ofabout 90 people - two-thirds of them children under the age of 5 -who wanted to reach a refugee camp in north-eastern Syria, a UNagency reported on Tuesday.They were fleeing the village of Baghuz, the last stronghold of theIslamic State group in eastern Syria.The main causes of death were "hypothermia, pneumonia, dehydration ormalnutrition complications," the United Nations Office for theCoordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said in a statement.  As of March 3, 90 people have died, either en route; shortly afterarriving at the camp; or after referral for treatment, the UN agencysaid.Between February 22 and March 1, about 15,000 people reached al-Holcamp from Baghuz, where the US-backed Kurdish-led Syrian DemocraticForces (SDF) have been battling Islamic State militants. OCHA said that the al-Hol camp population stands at 56,002individuals, of whom more than 90 per cent are women and children.Some children are arriving at the camp without their parents.The al-Hol camp has been receiving internally displaced personsfleeing the area around eastern Euphrates, where SDF have been wagingbattles to uproot the Islamic State group from its last remainingpockets in eastern Syria.  Many of those displaced had walked for days or travelled in opentrucks until they reached the areas controlled by the US-backedforces.According to activists in the area, refugees had to spend severalnights in the open air before they are given a tent to stay in al-Holcamp.Fadwa Baroud, a UN spokesperson in Damascus, told dpa that the UN inSyria, non-governmental organization partner groups and relevantauthorities are providing life-saving assistance and services to allnew arrivals. "This includes around the clock emergency health and protectionassistance, with all new arrivals receiving food, water, shelter, andwarm clothes and blankets," she said."The most pressing needs for those displaced remain shelter, waterand sanitation hygiene, health and protection, with physical andpsychological health, particularly vulnerable groups such as pregnantwomen, children and elderly people," Baroud added. International agencies have called for additional financial resourcesto meet the extensive needs at al-Hol camp.The spokesperson of the International Committee for the Red Cross(ICRC) in Syria, Adnan Hezam, described the situation inside the campas "tragic.""People are stressed and tired," he said, adding that new arrivalsare in worse condition than the ones who arrived earlier.He added that the camp is housing more people than for which it hascapacity, and more arrivals are expected. "Our teams are giving all the care for all refugees arriving, women,elderly and children in the camp, but of course we have great concernfor children who are arriving without their parents," he added.  Syria's Kurdish-led forces resumed their operation to capture Baghuzon Friday, after a lull in fighting to evacuate civilians and familymembers of Islamic State from the area.Thousands of civilians and family members of Islamic State militantshave been evacuated from the village.