A girl who was displaced from her home in northern Mali's embattled Gao region. Children have been especially affected by the fighting, said Lindsay Shearer, the IRC’s children and youth program coordinator.

The conflict in Mali is having grave consequences for civilians already suffering the effects of political instability, mass displacement and severe food shortages.

The conflict in Mali has displaced over 350,000 people and has had a devastating impact on children who are suffering from growing malnutrition.

L: Jabadjie, 16 months old and just nine pounds, at an IRC-supported clinic in Kati, Mali, in October 2012.  (Photo: Peter Biro/IRC). R: Jabadjie in November, after a few weeks of treatment. (Photo: IRC)

A girl, displaced from her home in northern Mali's embattled Gao region, living with relatives in Bamako.

Mariam Trauré, 16 months, is fed milk by her mother at an IRC-supported health center in Mali.

Assetou Diallo, with her brother (far right), her daughter Mariam and nephew Mohammed.

Abdoulaye Alassane runs the IRC’s education programs in northern Mali's Gao region. The IRC, along with its Malian aid partner, GREFFA, is working to reopen schools which have been shuttered since the crisis began, and to provide services to vulnerable young people, including play and support groups for displaced children.