UN fears polio surge in children from Fallujah

Residents of Fallujah, which Iraqi forces backed by US-led airstrikes are pushing to fully recapture from Islamic State [IS] group control, are suffering from extremely high rates of skin disease, hypertension and diarrhea, said Ala Alwan of the World Health Organisation [WHO].

Speaking to journalists after touring camps for displaced people around Fallujah, Alwan said mothers were nervous because their children had not been vaccinated since the IS takeover in 2014.

"A specific concern for us is polio," said Alwan, the WHO's chief for the eastern Mediterranean region.

"We have started a massive vaccination program," he said, urging donor nations to boost their support for Iraqi civilians fleeing the fighting.

He said it was too early to estimate the number of children to be targeted in the vaccination drive.

Alwan estimated that 40,000 people had fled the city during the offensive and that another 30,000 to 40,000 "are still inside."

Thousands of Iraqi civilians are fleeing to areas without adequate water and sanitation [AFP]

Camps for the displaced are filling up and more capacity is urgently needed.

"We have a huge demand," Alwan said. "It's [a] very, very sad situation."

Increasing likelihood of epidemics

Earlier this week Doctors Without Borders said that thousands of Iraqi civilians fleeing Fallujah have been without access to medicine for months and are fleeing to areas without adequate water and sanitation.

The head of MSF's mission in Iraq, Fabio Forgione, said families who have fled to camps are facing a lack of shelter and clean drinking water.

A cholera outbreak last year infected some 2,800 people in Iraq.

He said doctors are also treating people with conditions such as high blood pressure and diabetes who have not had access to medications.

"We are extremely concerned about the situation in Fallujah. We are talking about a city which has been besieged now for months, where access to care, access to food, access to assistance has been extremely hampered," Forgione told The Associated Press.

The conflict in Iraq has forced 3.3 million people to flee their homes.

Iraq is also hosting between 250,000-300,000 refugees from neighboring Syria who need medical assistance and mental health care, Forgione said. Most are living in camps or informal settlements.

"This is one of the worst humanitarian crises Iraq has been facing in the last 10 years," he said.

Agencies contributed to this report