UN: Snipers targeting children in Libya

Snipers are targeting children in the besieged rebel-held Libyan city of Misrata, according to the UN children’s agency.

Unicef spokeswoman Marixie Mercado told reporters in Geneva that the global body has received “reliable and consistent reports of children being among the people targeted by snipers in Misrata”.

She was unable to say how many children had been wounded or killed by gunmen in Libya’s third-largest city.

The UN has warned of a dire situation in the rebels’ last major foothold in the Gaddafi-controlled western half of Libya.

It said hundreds of people in Misrata have been killed and wounded and that residents are running short of water, food and medicine.