Angelina Jolie Urged The International Community To Educate Iraqi Children

Actress and activist for human rights Angelina Jolie urged the international community on Tuesday to educate Iraqi children a higher priority.

"The best way to treat children from the trauma of conflict is to have them focus on their future," Jolie told the Council on Foreign Relations.

Angelina Jolie, who visited Iraq in August, and other humanitarian workers discussed how to help children displaced Iraqis regain a sense of normalcy and stability through education.

The schooling of refugee children are often victims of violence and political unrest, "said Gene Sperling, an economic adviser to former President Bill Clinton, who co-chairs the Education Partnership for Children conflicts with Jolie.

"Every child has the right to education and conflict is not a reason to ignore that," Angelina Jolie said.

The Hollywood actress has visited more than 20 humanitarian hotspots, including Iraq and the Darfur region of Sudan, since becoming a goodwill ambassador of the United Nations in 2001.

The Iraq war has produced 4.5 million refugees and internally displaced persons. Of those who fled the country, about 1.5 million are now in neighbouring Syria, while hundreds of thousands have been moved to Jordan and Lebanon.

Speakers at the event recommended building more schools and provision of textbooks inside Iraq and urged more support for governments that host refugees from Iraq.

Syria and Jordan have stretched their limited budgets to educate some Iraqi children, but they need help to accommodate the influx of students, "said George Rupp, president and CEO of the International Rescue Committee.