For a child, five years can seem like a lifetime. Five years can see a young schoolchild grow into a teenager entering the exciting world of secondary school. Five years can turn an uncertain 15-year-old into a proud young student on the first day of university. But not for Syria’s children. These past five years have been the longest of their lives so far. And for most, they have brought only loss and despair.

Today, they are living through the most damaging conflict for children in the region’s recent history. More than 5.5 million Syrian children now see their future besieged by war.

It is estimated there are up to one million children who live under siege and in hard-to-reach areas that Unicef and other humanitarian partners cannot access on a regular basis.

Recently, orphaned, injured and disabled Syrian children attended a party organised by a non-governmental organisation, Douma Society, and the Syrian Arab Red Crescent in the rebel-held area of Douma, east of the capital Damascus. A psychological support team provides activities for the children including singing, watching cartoons and painting.

The International Committee of the Red Cross and Syrian Arab Red Crescent have been negotiating for months to access these areas. Without the agreement of all parties it is simply too dangerous to try: some 53 Red Cross and Red Crescent people have already been killed while delivering aid in Syria.