US, allies damaging children's lives in Syria: Commentator

Mahmoud Halyaf, a six-year-old Syrian boy who was born without arms, recently lost both of his legs after stepping on a mine planted by militants in the Syrian city of Aleppo. According to his mother, Madina Halyaf, the child lost his legs while fleeing a village in northern Aleppo along with his family. Yet this story has not even made it to Western mainstream media.

Press TV has spoken to Marwa Osman, a political commentator, and Fredrick Peterson, a US congressional defense policy adviser to get their take on the West’s double standards in the war on Syria.

Osman says the Western mainstream media has been exploiting children ever since the conflict started in Syria which is a “disgusting” act especially in times of war. 

“A lot of propaganda is being used in the media especially in the West but it is very sad to see images of children of course in war-torn areas being used whether it is a lie or not. There is some sort of a sentimental here that we have to look at, it is, these kids, how long they live through when they grow old and see themselves being exploited like this in the media,” she stated.

She also noted every day more than hundreds of children are affected by mortar shells being used by militants in eastern Aleppo who are funded by the United States and its allies.

The commentator went on to say the US and its allies are the ones who are exploiting children, damaging their lives and propagating the lies about the war that is going on in eastern Aleppo.

Aleppo, Syria's second largest city, has been divided between government forces and foreign-backed militants since 2012. The Syrian army launched operations to reunite the government-held western part and the militant-held eastern section of Aleppo on September 22, with the support of the Russian air force.

Osman further mentioned it is impossible to protect and stop the exploitation of children in a terrorist-ridden war-torn country.

“If you really want to protect a child, you would take the child away from a war-torn area but how would I take the child away from this area if he is besieged from everywhere,” she added.

She also argued it is the right of the Syrian government to protect its land from the terrorists which are being funded, aided and abetted by the US, Turkey and the UK.

Meanwhile, the other panelist on Press TV’s program, Fredrick Peterson opined that it is a sin for both sides in the conflict to make children victims of politics, adding that it is also a crime to hold up children and exploit their travails as a means of propaganda.

“As absolutely morally not just objectionable but disgusting it is to have children be the product of violence and sometimes the intended target of violence, it should also be acknowledged and equally rejected to have children to be used end exploited, children and the innocent, the weak, the helpless, anything that can stir the emotions being used as a propaganda tool in order to achieve political points,” he said. 

He also argued all innocents should be protected from the “irresponsible collateral damage” of the vigorous warfare being conducted by both sides. 

According to the analyst, people of good faith on both sides should rise up and demand that innocents be out of the targeting process and neither should they be exploited by shameless propaganda that uses broken and bleeding bodies of the young in an attempt to score propaganda points by either side.

The conflict in Syria, which flared up in March 2011, has claimed the lives of more than 400,000 people, according to an estimate by UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura.

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