Mashhad, Khorassan Prov., July 23, IRNA -- The holiest Iranian city o
Mashhad is home to the second largest group of street children after
the capital Tehran, a source with the provincial Welfare Department
said Sunday.
Hashem Mehdizadeh who is also deputy governor-general said there
are roughly 647 street children in Mashhad, 320 of whom identified by
the authorities. He said that those identified are being taken care of
by a center for street children.
"The parents of the children under force labor will be prosecuted
and punished," he warned.
The official pointed out that there are several rehabilitation
centers in the province to take care of the street children.
He stated that one another center has been set up for dealing with
the street children under the age of 12 in Mashhad, adding that a plan
is under way to establish another center for those aged above 12 and
under 18.
Earlier, representative of the United Nations Children's Fund
(UNICEF) Dr. Souleymane said that street children should be identified
and listed to benefit from projects developed to support the children
in Iran.
