UNITED NATIONS, Rabi’I 14, 1438, December 13, 2016, SPA -- The U.N. children’s agency (UNICEF) said Tuesday that roughly 35,000 children have fled from Mosul since Iraqi forces and a U.S.-led coalition launched an operation in mid-October to retake the city from Daesh. The children are among roughly 93,500 people who have fled since the operation began, while hundreds of thousands have remained in their homes. “Children are the innocent victims of any conflict and in this conflict are the most innocent victims,” Peter Hawkins, UNICEF representative in Iraq, told The Associated Press. Hawkins said that once Daesh is driven from the city it will be important to “invest in children’s services so this war doesn’t continue.” “We know that children who have been queueing up for water have been targets. I saw a photograph of a child this morning who’s been shot by a sniper queueing up for water,” Hawkins said. --SPA 19:44 LOCAL TIME 16:44 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/w289795